


Pokemon: Lillie Version

by EsseR3xinaLives



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions
Genre: Lillie for Pokemon Champion Sword/Shield!, Mentions of Hau, Mentions of Professor Kukui, Mentions of team rocket, More tags and characters to come, mentions of Moon - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-04
Updated: 2019-09-05
Packaged: 2019-11-09 03:05:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 23,287
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17993651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EsseR3xinaLives/pseuds/EsseR3xinaLives
Summary: After watching her friends grow over their Pokemon journey, Lillie decides to set out on her own journey.My take on Lillie's journey in Kanto.





	1. Prologue: Setting Sail for New Beginings

**Author's Note:**

> So, I know that this was a thing way back in the original Sun and Moon games, but playing the Let's Go Pokemon games made me feel like I had to do this. That game basically was made for Lillie to be the protagonist haha. Anyways, this chapter is more like a prologue, but it didn't seem right to start without it. I'll be updating this fic every month so look forward to more updates every month. With that being said please read, review, comment and enjoy!

_You didn’t tell us!_

The words echoed against her mind as she gave a slight shiver, watching over the railing as the ocean waves glistened before her.

_Hau… I’m sorry… but I’ve decided I have to go to Kanto.  To help my mother get better… but more than that… to help myself get stronger._

She closed her eyes as she took in the scent of the salty air.

_Of course I’m sad to leave Alola… but… the thought of going to Kanto also fills my heart with excitement!_

A gust of wind blew through her as she turned her face to the breeze.

_I’m going to become a real trainer and meet all kinds of wonderful Pokémon… I’m going to travel all around Kanto, just like we did here on Alola for your island challenges!_

Her eyes opened as she looked at the full moon’s reflection on the ocean, remembering her friend’s dark eyes misting over with tears as she tried to fight the knot that was forming in her throat.

_And no matter what happens on my journey… I’m going to be OK.  Because of the smiles that you shared with me.  You and Moon and everyone here… thank you all so much!_

Moon had to wipe their eyes at that point.  They were so different from the person that they had first met standing at the Ruins of Conflict.  They chopped their hair, replaced their short shorts with cargo pants and told the world that they would not be referred to with female pronouns.  It was like Moon had… _evolved_.

Lillie hoped that she could grow just as strong as Moon had.

_And that’s why someday… someday I’ll come back to Alola again!_

_But… but… I haven’t gotten to say any of the things that I wanted to say to you!  So… so… Arghhh!!_ _I’m gonna send you a letter!  A really, really long one!  You’d better wait!_

A soft chuckle escaped her as she shook her head at her friend’s frustrated promise.

_I will, Hau.  And please… take this._

She handed him a big Malasada.  She had actually planned on keeping the treat to herself, helping tie her over on the long trip to Kanto with a little taste of home, but she couldn’t just let Hau go with nothing after that.  After all, it was pretty unfair of her to keep them in the dark about her leaving.  She had meant to tell Moon but…

Well, she told them before she left.

_Moon… It may look a little worn, but…that is because this was my most treasured belonging once._

It was better that the Poké Doll was left in Moon’s care.  Even if they never would use it, Lillie now couldn’t either.

She was done with running away.

_Do you really have to go?_

She shuddered, the memory of those tear-stained cheeks as the Alolan champion clutched the beaten down Clefairy plush that was now in their arms wrenched at her heart.  Tears threatened to come back as she wiped them away.

_I’m sorry Moon.  I have to do this._

_But… Why can’t you have your journey here!  Why can’t you take the Island Challenge!  Why can’t you-_

_Moon…_

_Why do you have to leave!_

She stifled the sniffle that was coming, turning her gaze to the full moon.

_You left your home too._

Moon wouldn’t meet her gaze.  Kanto wasn’t something that Moon discussed with anyone much, but that didn’t keep Lillie from being any less curious about it.  Any questions about it were immediately deflected with defensiveness, and later sarcasm, which let Lillie know better than to push any further with it.

_You came to a completely new region and rose to become Alola’s Pokémon Champion.  So maybe, if I follow in those footsteps, I can become as strong as you are._

Moon held her gaze for a moment before biting their lip and turning away, Lillie guessing it was because she brought up the unspoken forbidden subject as she gave a sigh.

_Then I suppose… this is good-bye._

She stared over the railway, imagining that she could still see Professor Kukui waving back at her, her heart sinking as her two dearest friends remained further in on the pier.  She was worried about what they’d think about her.  Those faces of betrayal that she feared would be with her as she traveled to a distant and unfamiliar land.  She began to falter, worrying that maybe this was going to be a mistake.

_You better train super hard while you’re out there Lillie!  I wanna be the first person you battle as soon as you get back!_

She remembered looking back over the pier, the teary-eyed champion waving the PokéDoll in the air as she wiped her tears and waved back.

_It’s a promise!_

She stared over the railing at the infinite ocean.  It had been four days since she had left the Alolan shore, waving to the people who had cared for her since she had fled her mother and now was fleeing again to try to save her.

She gave a yawn.  She really needed to get her rest.  They were supposed to make landfall in the morning and she didn’t want to sleep in and miss the beginning of her very own Pokémon journey.  She entered the cabin, moved to her room and collapsed on the bed, anxiety buzzing about her as she tried to sleep, but it always seemed to evade her.  She just couldn’t help it.

Tomorrow, she would start her journey as a Pokémon trainer.

And she was absolutely exhilarated to see what her journey would have in store.


	2. Land Ahoy!  The Start of a New Journey!

It was so difficult for her to sleep.

She couldn’t help it!  They were _so_ close to where she would begin her adventure, so how could she sleep?  She was just too excited, but also somewhat curious.  Was Hau this nervous when he began his Island Challenge, knowing that the ordeal would force him to face his grandfather to prove his merit as a Pokémon trainer?  And what about Moon?  Were they able to sleep on the boat, awaiting their inevitable arrival to Alola where they would be thrust into their journey?  Where Lillie herself would throw them to the Spearow to save Nebby.  But Moon didn’t hesitate.  Moon didn’t complain.  They ran straight ahead on that rickety bridge, never stopping despite the falling planks.  They never turned around, never ran away.

She wasn’t running away.

Perhaps that’s what made falling asleep so hard.  What made awaiting her arrival on Kanto to hard.

The last time she was on a boat she was with Professor Burnett, travelling to Kukui’s lab as she tried to deflect Burnett’s questions of how she washed up on shore, where she was from, how she found the mysterious Pokémon that she kept hidden in her bag.  She was hiding from her, hiding from her mother, hiding from the world.

She was running away.

But that wasn’t the case any longer.

She couldn’t help but feel like what she imagined Moon felt when crossing that bridge.  That there was this exhilarating unknown waiting for them to journey forward.  To run towards the dreams that they held without hesitation.  A soft smile crossed her lips as she felt her eyes finally close.

She was on her way to her dream.

“LAND AHOY!!!”

“WHAT!?!?”

The blonde bolted upright as she shrieked, looking for her watch on her nightstand before panic began to settle in.  “Oh no.  Oh nonononono!”

She rushed out of her cabin, running quickly towards the deck as the Aether Foundation agent greeted her with a soft smile.  “Good morning Miss Lillie.  Did you sleep well?”

“Oh, um… well... not really…” she answered before returning his smile with a sheepish one of her own.  “But that doesn’t matter.  Mother will finally get help.”

“Perhaps,” the man stated kindly with his eyes straight ahead.  “However, I’m sure Lady Lusamine wouldn’t like to hear that your losing sleep fretting over her.  Especially when you came all this way to start a Pokémon journey of your own.”

“I know…” the blonde groaned lowly as she leaned against the railing.  “I just don’t know what to expect.  I’ve never been to Kanto before.”

“Well, if you’d like an idea, you can look right ahead of you.”

Green eyes turned perplexedly at the man before looking over the mast to see the looming trees and lined houses in the distance.  She practically gawked at the sight.  The shores were rocky and not at all ideal for mooring a boat, especially not one with her mother in her weakened state.

“Is that where we’re landing?”

“Not quite,” the man stated with an indifferent shrug.  “Those are just the mountains that surround the cape.  Bill said he will help us dock the ship once we arrive.”

The blonde gave a slight nod as she turned back to the horizon.  “I can’t believe we’re finally here.”

“It does feel like a long time when your stuck on a small boat for so long,” the man responded with a chuckle.  “But we all have our missions to fulfill, speaking of which are you planning on beginning your Pokémon adventure in your pajamas?”

The blonde quickly looked over her white nightgown decorated in Lilies before a deep blush rose to her cheeks.  “I-I’ll be right back!”

She rushed back, to her room, berating herself for forgetting to dress before leaving her cabin as she tore through her dresser to pull out her familiar white top and skirt.  She tied her hair back into a ponytail with braids wrapped around it as she looked at herself in the mirror, at her Z-formed creation for herself.  She remembered when she slept in her mother’s bed the night before deciding that she couldn’t keep running, but she didn’t think she could be strong enough to save her mother.  She had vanished into the Ultra Wormhole and she was going to try to get her back… somehow.

But Moon never hesitated.  They didn’t hesitate to help Nebby on the bridge.  They didn’t hesitate to battle the Team Skull Grunts who were trying to steal her duffel bag where she tried to hide the errant Pokémon she was desperately trying to save.  They didn’t hesitate when a small child’s Yungoose was stolen, breaking into Team Skull’s hideout single handedly to save the Pokémon.  They didn’t hesitate to infiltrate Aether Paradise when Nebby was finally kidnapped to open the Ultra Wormhole her mother disappeared to nor to find the other flute that would allow them to chase after her mother.

They never hesitated.  And Lillie couldn’t if she wanted to save her mother, but she didn’t know how.  How was she supposed to be as strong as Moon was?

The image of the Normalium-Z pose struck her mind.

She didn’t have a Z-ring, she wasn’t a trainer, but she saw Moon use it.  Placing their arms in an X before circling them outward.  They punched both arms forward, with their right wrist above the left before lowering them to the right, rising with the left moving above their shoulder.  The right forcefully moved horizontal across their stomach and the left moved just as swiftly in front of their forehead right after, creating the shape of a ‘Z’ as energy flowed between them and their Pokémon.

Lillie mimicked the dance, moving her arms to the familiar steps she had watched dozens of times before ending in the ‘Z’ pose.  She giggled lightly.  She always felt so foolish doing it, but she also couldn’t help but feel a little braver each time she did it.  As if there was someone who was giving their energy to her every time she danced those steps.

“We’ve reached the cape!”

Lillie jumped up as she quickly grabbed her pink bag to rush back up to the deck.  The mountains were towering them on either side while in the distance a small house was seen close to the edge of the shore.

“Is that… Bill’s house?”

“Must be given the map we have here.”

“How does he not get claustrophobic with all these mountains surrounding him?”

“It opens up further in,” the same man from earlier explained as he held his map out.  “See here?  This is Cerulean City.  Once we get past this cliff we should be able to see it.”

The blonde hummed neutrally before her eyes locked back on the house.  “I really hope he knows how to help mother.”

“I’m sure he does, and if not we’ll come up with something else.  Remember it was your brilliant research that led to this moment.  If things don’t work out here I’m sure you’ll come up with another solution.”

“Hm…” she paused for a moment.  Her first reaction was to voice that she wasn't sure what else she could do, but that just didn’t seem to fit anymore.  No matter what happened, Hau and Moon never gave up and things worked out.  If she wanted to be more like them then she needed to start believing in the future like they did.

“You’re right!  I’m sorry for doubting myself I just… this is a very new situation to me.”

“You do what needs to be done when you need to.” The man responded with a full grin.  “You saved that Cosmog as well as our foundation's founder.  I know it must not have been easy for you, but I do admire the dedication you have in helping others.”

The blonde suppressed a giggle.  She didn’t think much of what _she_ did was admirable, but the sentiment was nice to hear.  “Thank you so much.”

“Of course.”

They turned back to the cape, Cerulean City opened up to their left as straight ahead they saw a brunette man waving at them from behind a fence.  He opened the gate as they moved closer to the shore, stopping a few meters away to release their gangway before they moved the woman in the wheelchair down towards the man.

“Bring her right in!  We can check her condition immediately!”

The Aether member disappeared in the house with the man as the blonde slowly made her way onto the shore as she looked around.

She felt truly alone.

She gave a sigh as she kicked off her shoes and waded her feet in the nearest pool that was right by Bill’s house.  He really did have a fantastic view of Cerulean City.  Eventually, she would visit that city.  She would stop by for supplies before continuing on her journey.  Of course, she had also heard that Cerulean had a Pokémon gym.  What was that like?  Had Moon ever battled the gym leaders here?  Did she know the gym leader?

The muffled sound of voices within the house behind her disrupted her from her thoughts.  She really should be in there too, but…

She shook her head.  She wasn’t ready for that yet.  She knew that her mother needed help urgently in getting Nihilego’s poison removed from her bloodstream, that made leaving Alola and saying goodbye to Hau and Moon feel necessary.  But the next time she’d say goodbye.

She shuddered.  She would be all alone.  As in _all_ alone.  There was no Moon to lean on, no Hau, and with her mother needing to focus on treatment-

“Hey!”

She jumped at the voice, immediately recognizing the brown-haired man as she quickly dusted herself off before offering a bow.  “Hello.  Oh! Um, I apologize for my rudeness.  Thank you so much for helping my mother.”

“Hey, don’t sweat it,” the world-renowned Pokémaniac brushed off as he took a seat beside where she had resided.  “I’m sure I’ll get more than I could’ve hoped for in my research by helping out.  Besides, if someone didn’t help me reconstruct my human form when I had turned into a Pokemon then who knows where I’d be right now.”

The blonde giggled lightly as she returned her feet to the water.  “What was it like?  Being a Pokémon?”

“Well, I could still speak human languages and with my Nidorino hooves I couldn’t even open my front door, so it was really dull from my experience.  I’m sure any other Pokémon would have a vastly different experience from my own considering the confines I was trapped in.”

“Did you try using any Pokémon moves while you were one?”

“I did, but nothing seemed to really work.  Even my tackle was pretty unimpressive.” The man answered as he turned his head to the sky.  “I speculate that, because I’m naturally a human, I don’t have the inborn ability to use Pokémon moves even if I take on a Pokémon’s form.  I was actually hoping to share notes with Professor Kukui, he’s the best expert on Pokémon moves there is.”

“That’s only because he wrestles his Pokémon constantly.  I’m surprised he doesn’t end up at the hospital more often.”

Bill loosed a laugh that shook his shoulders.  “Yeah, I have heard that his methods are a bit unorthodox, but we all have our own ways of learning.”

“I suppose…” the blonde answered quietly, staring at her reflection in the water.  “By the way, what brought you out here?”

“Well, we finished running our tests on your mother, all that’s left is to wait for the results.  I noticed that you weren’t in the house with the others so I figured I would check to make sure you’re okay.”

“I’m fine…” the blonde stated a little too quickly causing the man to sigh.

“If you say so.”  The man stated casually as he pulled out a rolled newspaper from his back pocket and handed it to the blonde causing the girl to eye him suspiciously.

“What’s this for?”

“I just figured you might be interested in the first page.  Keep up on Alola and all that.”

She unfolded the page before a light chuckle escaped her.  On the front page was none other than Moon, arm raised in the air with their Pokémon jumping jubilantly in the background with the headline ‘Kantonian Takes over Alolan Pokémon League.’  She skimmed over the page, the inevitable question as to why Moon wouldn’t use female pronouns with the answer that became known around the world.

_Do you think of yourself as legendary?_

“Most legendary Pokémon don’t have a gender so why do I need one?”

_My hope is that I will be._

“Yeah, that comment turned the region inside out.”

Lillie turned quickly to the analytical blue gaze.  “How so?”

“Well, Kanto hasn’t exactly been known for it’s progression on social issues unfortunately.”  The man deadpanned.  “Honestly, I’m glad Moon’s able to be as much of themself as their able to in Alola.”

“Did you know Moon?”

The man shook his head.  “I did meet them a few times when I’d visit the trainer’s school, but they were shy and didn’t like talking to people.  It wasn’t until I saw that that I got an idea as to why.”

Green eyes turned back to the newspaper as the blonde felt slightly ashamed for nosing into her friend’s past life.  She began to realize that Kanto probably didn’t treat them as kindly as it has others.

“Well, I’m going back inside to check on the tests.  Feel free to keep that if you’d like.”

“Okay… thank you.”

The blonde gave a beautiful smile as the man waved and turned back towards the house.  She looked back over to Cerulean City on the other side of the river before raising the paper in front of the city and lowering it again.

If Moon could go to a new region and completely change the world than so could she.  She could do it!  She could travel around Kanto, meet all kinds of Pokémon and finally show herself and the world who she really is!

SKRAAAW

The blonde jumped as she heard the cry rushing forward as the paper flew behind her and her wet feet pounded against the dirt road.  She knew she’d heard it to the West, but what was-?

SKRAAAAWSKRAAWSKRAAW

She skidded to a halt at the sight.  Three Spearow were attacking a lone Clefairy that looked like it had fallen during a pursuit.  The blonde paused, why were Spearow _always_ being mean to other Pokémon?  What was she supposed to do?

She shook her head before running forward with eyes closed.  She couldn’t think about it.  Moon didn’t think about it so she wouldn’t either.  She would just dive in and save the Clefairy and-

The Spearow began to peck at her arms as she screamed.  What was she thinking?!  This was absolutely ridiculous!  What did she think she could do?!  She wasn’t a real trainer!

“Clefai-ree…”

She opened her eyes towards the weak cries of the Pokémon.  The battered Clefairy tried to get up but fell back down as the weight of their wounds brought them back down.  The blonde waved her arms as she moved forward, hugging the Pokémon to her chest.

“I’m so sorry Clefairy.  I promise I’ll get you out of this somehow.”

“Cle… fair…y?”

“Kyah!”

The Spearow continued to assault her back.  One of them dug their claws into her shoulder and grabbed her backpack strap when- wait, her backpack!

She threw an elbow back to the Spearow to drive it away, causing the strap to fall over her shoulder as she hurriedly dug through her bag for something to help them.  She may not have her Pokédoll anymore, but she had something just as good.

“LEAVE US ALONE!!!”

She sprayed the Repel, the Spearow continuing to caw as they flew away from the stench as she held the Clefairy close to her in one arm while continuing to drive the Pokémon away.  They slowly floated higher, the blonde watching their ascent as they continued to eye them predatorily.  This was it.  She hugged the Clefairy tighter as she ran as fast as she could to Bill’s house, the Spearow following high overhead until the blonde was out of the Repel’s radius.  They dove down quickly, the blonde barely able to stay in front as the house came into sight.

“BIIIIIILLLL!!!!!”

The Spearow continued to claw and peck at her, barely out of reach, but very close to being overwhelmed.

“BIIIIIILLLL!!!!”

“What?!  What’s going on?!”

The brunette stepped out hurriedly as his eyes widened at the sight of the beaten blonde carrying a beaten Clefairy and three Spearow clawing at their heels.

“Go Jolteon!”

He flung a Pokéball past the blonde, the electric mammalian creature materializing between the Spearow and their prey.

“Jolteon, use discharge!!!”

“JOOOOLLLTEON!!!!”

An eruption of lighting cascaded around the Pokémon as the blonde watched in awe as the Spearow were taken down with a single hit by the lightning Pokémon.

“Wow…”

“Lillie, what have you got there?”

“Huh? Oh!”  She turned to the shivering fairy Pokémon in her arms.  “They were attacking this Clefairy.  I tried to stop them, but they just wouldn’t-”

“Is that Clefairy holding a Moon Stone?”

The blonde hummed questioningly before turning to see the Clefairy clutching something close to it’s body.  “Oh, I didn’t notice-”

“Fair-…fair-y…”

“Um…”

The Clefairy tossed in her arms, seeming to try to hide the stone from their prying eyes as the blonde froze in place.

“It looks like that Clefairy is trying to protect the stone there.”

“Do you think it’s holding onto it to evolve?”

“I doubt it,” the man stated as his hand moved to cup his chin.  “They would’ve evolved by now if they were using it for themself.”

“Maybe they’re waiting till their stronger.”

“That’s a possibility.  Guess we won’t know till they get better.”

“I guess not,” the blonde stated softly as she watched the poor Pokémon shudder again.  “Is there a way to help them?”

“Bring them in, I’ve got a healing machine in the back.”

“Right!”

“Come on back Jolteon, you did fantastic!”

The lightning Pokémon gave a cheery cry before returning to it's Pokeball as the Pokemaniac led them into the house.  Lillie wandered in with Clefairy tightly in her arms as she began taking in the sight of his haphazardly organized work space that was half residence, half laboratory.

“Over this way.”

“Okay.”

She moved slowly behind the man as he led her past piles of research notes and walls of monitors towards a far corner where the healing machine was located.  The blonde gently placed the Clefairy on the healing pad before Bill raised the glass over it and turned on the machine.

“Will Clefairy be okay?”

“They should be fine,” the man stated as he watched closely to make sure the machine was healing the Pokémon’s wounds properly.  “It’s a good thing you helped them when you did.  Those Spearow looked like they weren’t letting up.”

“I just… did what I thought Moon would do.”

“And it shows,” the man stated with a grin.  “Your looking like a real Pokémon trainer already.”

The blonde giggled lightly before looking herself over.  “I don’t remember Hau or Moon ever looking as mucked up as I do right now.”

“Everyone’s journey starts differently.  Which, I guess, means yours can’t really start till you get your first Pokémon.”

“I was planning on going straight to Pallet Town after dropping my mom off here.  Professor Oak said he could help me out with getting started.”

“Well, there’s only one way to get to Pallet Town from here and that’s through the Diglett cave in Vermillion.”

“What!”  The blonde cried as her arms flailed.  “You mean there’s no way I can get there from here?!”

“Nope.  Anyone from Pallet Town you would go through Pewter, but once you get past Mt. Moon there’s no way back.”

She gave a light groan.  “And how do I get to Vermillion?”

“It’s actually not so bad.  You just need to go due south through Saffron.  Unlike most routes in Kanto, the way from here to Vermillion has a clear path so you won’t have to worry about running into wild Pokémon on your way there.”

The blonde gave a soft sigh.  If that were the case than Diglett Cave was all that she would have to worry about as far as avoiding Pokémon encounters, so that made it a little easier.  “Alright.  I’ll head to Vermillion, get through Diglett Cave and start my Pokémon journey!”

“Sounds good!  Oh, and if your heading to Vermillion you may as well have this.”

The blonde took the offered gift before reading the print on it.  “A ticket to the S. S. Anne?”

“Yeah, it’s a super fancy cruise ship!  You should totally go, all sorts of awesome trainers from around the world are going to be there!”

“Really?!”  The blonde asked excitedly.  Maybe Moon would be there?  They were the Alolan champion after all.  “Wait, why are you giving this to me anyway?  Don’t you want to go?”

“Nah, fancy get togethers aren’t really my thing,” the man dismissed with a wave of his hand.  “Besides, after the way you helped this Clefairy and with everything going on with your mom you should take this chance to relax.”

She eyed the tickets with a gleam in her eyes.  “Thank you so much Bill.  For everything.”

The man rose and gave her a hearty grin.  “It’s what I’m here for.”

She gave another smile.  Something about him reminded her of Professor Kukui which helped her feel a little more at ease.  She tucked the ticket into her bag as she returned to the boat to grab her spare clothing and change out of her muddied up ones, finding her shoes left by the shore.  She didn’t have a Pokémon yet, but she couldn’t stop the stupid smile from forming on her face.  She was actually doing it.

She was actually on her way to her Pokémon adventure.


	3. The Ship of Unexpected Encounters

She had always wondered what Vermilion City would look like.  Ever since she was a little girl she had heard of the S.S. Anne that traveled the world, making stops to different locations only once a year where the most powerful trainers would be invited to show their strength to the far reaches of the world.  She was so excited when an invitation came for her mother with tickets for Gladion and herself as well.

They never went.

Her mother always claimed that they had too many Pokémon that needed help in the Paradise to spend a whole year on the cruise ship and since it never stopped in Alola it just never seemed feasible to fly to another region simply to stop inside a ship for the few hours it’d be docked.  She understood.  Sitting idly by as her mind imagined the glorious wonders that would reside on the ship while her voice refused to give existence to those imaginings.  She'd simply accept the sad truth that it was never meant to be.

At least, until now it wasn’t.

Now she was standing in front of the bustling port with her ticket in hand as she stared at the massive ship that loomed before her.  She had never seen a ship that was so _big._   It was almost scary looking at it, it could have been as large as Aether Paradise.

She gulped.  What if she got lost in there?  What if she ran into a trainer?  What if they wanted to battle?

What if it was Moon?

She shook her head fervently as she ran ahead.  She couldn’t help but feel so weak but she would’ve given anything for a familiar face right now and the idea that Moon might be there was just too tempting to deny.  She rushed across the planks, trying to squeeze her way past the passengers who had stepped out to stretch their legs until she finally made it towards the gangway.

“Excuse me, I would like to board please.”

“Of course, do you have your ticket ma’am?”

“Right here!”  She announced with a large smile as it seemed to sparkle in her hand.  The man briskly took it before loosing a chuckle and writing something on it.  “Bill avoiding the festivities again this year huh?”

“I take it that’s a common theme for him?”

“Only every year,” the man replied gruffly as he returned the ticket.  “They were thinking of not inviting him anymore, but the people he ends up giving these to end up showing quite promise.  You must be quite the trainer.”

“Oh, I-I’m not a trainer.  I mean, I’m hoping to be one, but I haven’t even gotten my first Pokémon yet…”

“Really now?  Well, I’m not sure what you’re hoping to find inside then.  Just about everyone else here is a trainer.”

“I know, but I think it’ll still be quite inspiring just to see the different Pokémon everyone has.  There are very few places where one can find Pokémon from all the known world in one space.”

“I suppose that is true,” the man stated while scratching the back of his head.  “Just mind yourself.  You wouldn’t want to walk right in front of a Charizard’s flamethrower.”

She beamed a brilliant smile at the man.  “Don’t worry, I will.  Thanks again so much!”

“Of course, you enjoy yourself now!”

She gave a friendly wave before walking further up the gangway, making her way up to the entrance of the boat where she was greeted by another staff member.

“Welcome to the S.S. Anne.  How may I be of assistance?”

The blonde looked down each side of the hallway, both looking endless before she looked back towards the woman who offered a kind smile.  “Actually, if you don’t mind, could you give me a quick layout of the ship?”

“Most certainly.  This ship has three levels with boarding rooms on all floors.  Many like to explore the rooms in search of strong challengers though I will ask that you please knock before entering if you are looking for a private battle.”

“Oh, um, of course!”  The blonde answered a bit flustered.  Did the woman really think she would simply barge into someone’s room so rudely simply to challenge them to a Pokémon battle?  Well, perhaps it was more that it was a problem for others.  She could understand the excitement of getting to find another trainer with potentially new Pokémon that they had never seen before.  She released a slight giggle as she could only imagine Hau behaving in such a way.  “I will be sure to not intrude on anybody.  What can I find on each level?”

“Well, other than the boarding rooms, this floor here happens to be where the kitchen is at.  I would recommend you stay out of the chefs way since they are preparing a grand buffet for all passengers here while we are docked in Kanto.  Other than that you can reach the ship’s deck from the second floor as well as the Captain’s Quarters.  I would also ask that you not bother the captain however, as he is entertaining an old friend who is also supposed to be a surprise guest for the banquet this evening.”

“Really?  Who is this surprise guest?”

“Well,” the woman responded with a cheeky grin.  “It would reflect quite poorly on my work etiquette if I were to spoil such a surprise, wouldn’t it?”

The blonde released a sigh as she slumped slightly.  “I suppose it would.”

“Cheer up dear,” the woman said sweetly as green eyes turned to her equally sweet smile.  “The banquet is to be held in about two hours and this ship won’t leave until after it’s done.  After all, the surprise guest can’t be stuck on this ship since he’s got business to attend to here in Kanto.”

“He?”

“I suppose I’ve said too much,” the woman said sighing before the same smile returned.  “Just try to keep my slip-up between us okay?  It’ll be our little secret.”

“Of course,” the blonde answered with a light giggle.  “Thank you so much for all your help.”

“You are most welcome.  If you should find yourself needing more assistance, please feel free to seek me out here.”

“I’ll be sure to remember that,” the blonde answered with a smile before running down the hall to hop up the stairs, following the directions towards the next staircase that would take her up to the deck.

She was immediately hit with the smell of salt water.

It seemed ridiculous that she didn’t even spend a full twenty-four hours on land before hopping back on a ship to look over the ocean again.  It just felt so natural to her.  She did spend most of her life on an artificial island, how is that any different than a ship?

“Jigglypuff, use disable!”

“Jiggleeeeepuff!!!”

“Ghastly, dissipate!”

Sparks flew where the Ghastly was as it disappeared in thin air, a smirk crossing the trainer’s face as the Jigglypuff’s trainer took a deep breath that synced with his Pokémon's.  “Stay sharp Jigglypuff.”

“Jiggly!”

They stood perfectly still for a moment, poised for an attack that the blonde wasn’t even sure was going to happen.  She watched on in curiosity, pondering the events that may transpire next before the gaseous form reappeared behind the fairy Pokémon causing Lillie to shriek.

“Ghastly, poison gas!“

“Feint attack now Jigglypuff!”

The gas form moved to suffocate the fairy Pokémon as they twirled around and threw a right hook that grew darker with it’s momentum before it slammed into the ghost Pokémon as it rolled across the deck.

“Ghastly!  No!”

The man ran towards the Ghastly, holding them in his arms.  “Ghastly!  Are you alright?!”

“Ghaaaassss….”

“Ghastly is unable to fight!  Pokémon breeder Joel is the winner!”

“Did you hear that Jigglypuff!  You did it!”

“Puff Puff!”

The blonde giggled lightly as she rushed forward to congratulate the winner only to be beaten to it by his opponent.  “That was a splendid battle Joel!  You’ve raised this Pokémon quite well, I’m sure my granddaughter will be pleased.”

“I certainly hope so,” the man stated as he ruffled the top of his Pokémon’s head.  “This Jigglypuff has been eager to meet their new trainer.”

“And my granddaughter has been eager to meet Jigglypuff,” the man answered with a chuckle.  “But I must say, I was not expecting a Feint Attack from a Jigglypuff.  What a stroke of genius!  I didn’t even know such a thing was possible.”

“Well I don’t cut corners with my Pokémon breeding.  Breed them from the egg till their ready for a trainer to show them the real world.”

“But you also breed Pokémon for Professor Oak, don’t you?  I’m surprised you don’t go out and become a full-time trainer yourself.”

“Aw, but then I wouldn’t be able to spend as much time raising as many Pokémon as I can.”

“I suppose that’s fair.”

They ended their conversation with hearty chuckles as they clasped shoulders with the blonde’s drooping in response.  The fact that the Jigglypuff was simply raised to go do battle for someone that they had never even met before was a little... disheartening.  But, the way everyone seemed to crowd around the Pokémon Breeder as they asked for advice on raising their own or if he could raise their Pokémon for them she thought that she perhaps didn’t have the right to judge.  Moon looked like they would have a breakdown anytime their Pokémon were away from them for more than five minutes so it just seemed like a a person should stick by their Pokemon's side no matter what.

…

But, then again, she left Nebby with Moon.

So… maybe it was for the best.

She wasn’t ready for Pokémon training like Moon was and Nebby was so anxious to get out and see the world.

She released a sigh as she moved towards the side railing as another battle ensued in the background.  Maybe she should’ve paid attention.  Took notes on what moves each Pokémon knows, how they battled, how the bonds between trainers and Pokémon created a strength that was impossible for any person alone to do, but she just couldn’t focus on those things right now.

All she could think about was where was Moon at?

This was where all the greatest trainers and Pokémon experts in the world were supposed to gather, right?  So why wasn’t Moon in sight?

CRASH

CLATTERCLATTER

“Watch it you klutz!”

“Hey, you’re the one that said we should sneak on from the bow!”

“I said the _bowls!!!_   As in we sneak into one of the windows below and work our way up!”

“Well how was I supposed to know that?!”

“Um… excuse me…”

“WHAT!?!?!”

The gentleman straightened his tie and cleared his throat as he turned his gaze back to the strange duo.  “I was simply going to ask who the two of you were.”

A soft chuckle escaped the two before they pushed past the man as they posed dramatically on the rail centered to the deck.

“Prepare for trouble!”

“And make it double.”

Silence fell over the deck as all heads turned to the two newcomers who somehow managed to harness the power of the sun to spotlight their exact location.

“To infect the world with devastations!”

“To ignite all peoples within our nation.”

“To reflect the virtues of truth and love.”

“To return our gaze to the stars above.”

“Allison.”

“Clay.”

“Team Rocket is here to steal the world’s light.”

“Surrender now or there will certainly be a fight!”

The silence returned, with the sound of what Lillie thought might have been a Kricketot chirping in the background, though she knew that that Pokémon wasn’t native to Kanto.  Of course, it wasn’t unlikely that someone from another region might have one on the ship somewhere.

“That’s not even the Team Rocket motto!”

“How dare you mock-!”

“MAR!!!”

“GYAHHH!!!”

The man who announced himself as Clay began rolling across the deck with his pants on fire while the Magmar’s tail flicked sporadically at the joy of stuffing their face with the all-you-can-eat buffet.  Allison held her head by two fingers as her face turned red and steam erupted from her ears.

“Clay!  What are you doing?!  Get your Magmar to do something!!!”

“But Allison, my pants!!!”

“Oh for the love of-!”

She moved to the banquet table, ripped off the tablecloth and tied the edges around her neck so that it fluttered in the breeze as the makeshift cape twirled dramatically.  She then pulled out an incredibly extravagant looking net gun and fired it at Joel, capturing him and cranking a lever on the side to reel him in.

“Wah!  What are you doing?!”

“Yeah Allison, what  _are_ you doing?  I thought we were here to steal Pokémon!”

“We _were_ , but this guy can make a whole army of them.  What’s the point of stealing a bunch of wimpy Pokémon when we can get this guy to make us a bunch of super strong ones?”

“Oh, that’s pretty smart!”

“I know right?!”

“Hey!”

Lillie ran to the center of the deck, challenging the duo for their attention.  “What do you think you’re doing?!  You can’t just abduct people like that!”

“Oh?”  The teal-haired woman asked with a flourish.  “What do you plan to do about it?”

“I…”  She flinched.  Curse her impulsiveness, what  _could_ she do?  She wasn’t a trainer!  She turned towards the crowd who had simply circled around to gawk at the child who was attempting to stop a kidnapping.  Weren’t they all _trainers?_   Why weren’t they doing anything?!

She shook herself out of her thoughts as she gulped deeply.  She couldn’t hesitate.  Hesitation was the enemy.  She had to act.

“I’ll take you on!”

“Oh really?”  Her partner with reddish-brown hair answered as he rose as menacingly as he could after the comedic event that had befallen him.  “Then we accept your challenge, go Magmar!  Use Flamethrower!”

“MAAAGMAAAAR!!!”

Lillie screamed as she dove to the side while the flames tore at the spot by where she was as the crowd that would’ve been hit by the blast simply parted before clapping their hands at the display.

“What are you all clapping for?!”

“Hey, where’s your Pokémon?”

“I don’t have one!”

“Then what are you doing challenging us?”  The man known as Clay asked.  “Well, I suppose it makes little difference.  You have to go through with a challenge no matter the conditions when you issue it.”

The blonde planted her hand on the deck before immediately retreating it at the feeling of something... mushy?  She looked to where the object was before getting an idea.

“Magmar use Flamethrower again!”

“MAAAG-“

“Eat this!”

“MAAAaaar-?”

The Pokémon paused as it chewed on the chocolatey confection that Lillie had found on the floor and threw into the Magmar’s mouth before it squealed in delight.

“Mar!”

“You liked that didn’t you?  Well there’s still more food over here if you’re hungry.”

“Magmar!”

The flame Pokémon rushed towards the table as the blonde stepped to the side, leaving a very flustered Clay in their wake.  “Wait, Magmar, don’t listen to her!  We still have a fight to finish!”

“Magmar!”

The duo groaned as Magmar stuffed its face with whatever confections it could grab hold of as Joel was getting irritated with his situation as a hostage.  “So, can you guys let me go now?”

“Quiet!  Can’t you see we’re busy?!”  The woman shouted before she turned back towards the blonde as fire blazed in her eyes.  “You may have been able to manipulate Clay’s little minion, but you won’t get past me.  Go Electabuzz!”

She threw a Pokéball as the thunder Pokémon appeared with a yawn before scratching one of its armpits.  “Electabuzz use Thunderpunch!”

“Buuuuuuuzzzz”

The Pokémon rubbed its eyes before stretching it’s arms as Allison gave another groan.  “Electabuzz, do as I say or you won’t be able to get back to your nap.”

“ELECTABUZZ!!!”

Suddenly invigorated by the words the electric Pokémon rushed towards the blonde to swing a punch before she jumped to her right and dodged it.  This was bad, she was completely defenseless against the Pokémon and nobody around was doing a single thing!

“Try it again Electabuzz, Thunderpunch!”

“BUUUZZZZ!!!”

She slipped as she tried to get up, losing the much needed time she needed in order to dodge the attack.

This was it.

CRACKLEBOOM!!!

The blonde slowly opened her eyes.  She didn’t feel any pain, did the Electabuzz miss?  She turned towards the Pokémon before recognizing a small figure in front of her.

“Clefairy?”

“Fairy, fair!”

She looked at the Pokémon whose coat seemed to gleam like steel as she realized that the Clefairy must have blocked the attack for her.  It breathed heavily as it eyed down the Electabuzz before running off towards it.

“Clefairy, wait!”

It jumped on top of the Electabuzz’s head as it began hitting the Pokémon sporadically while it flailed wildly.

“Electabuzz, what are you doing?!  Just grab the cretin and get rid of it!!!”

The Pokémon did just that as it stopped to use one of it’s huge hands to grab the Clefairy before chucking it against one of the railings.

“Now, use Thunderpunch!”

“ELECTABUZZ!!!”

“NO!!!”

WHAM

The blonde screamed as electricity coursed through her momentarily before she dropped to her knees to be met with the concerned gaze of the fairy Pokémon.  Her fingers twitched slightly, gaining feeling again as her lips shifted into a soft smile.

“A-Are you… okay?”

“Clefairy…”

She gave two more heavy breaths before she allowed a light chuckle to escape.  “Good.”

The female villain groaned in frustration, losing her patience as she gave a final order.  “Electabuzz!  Finish them off for good!”

“ELECTA!!!”

“Don’t worry Clefairy.  I’ll keep you safe.”

The sound of crackling electricity erupted behind her as she closed her eyes and turned to shield the Clefairy.

“Clefairy!”

“BUUU-!!!”

CRASH

The blonde struggled to open her eyes again.  She heard the impact, but it didn’t hit her, so who-?

“Oh my gosh!!!  It’s Red!!!!!”

“Red’s here?!”

“I need to get a picture on my Pokégear!”

She opened her eyes, sighting a boy who looked to be only a few years older than herself as he stared down the duo over the Pikachu who was standing poised to attack the Electabuzz that was sitting in the mass of tables and had landed right on top of the Magmar that was eating earlier.

“Hey!  What do you think you’re doing?!”

The man simply raised his eyes as he tilted his hat upward to gaze at the woman who flinched.  He let his arm fall before raising it back by his shoulder in a fist and then flinging it forward as the Pikachu began to crackle with lightning as the woman stuttered at the sight of it.

“PIIIIKAAAACHUUUUU!!!!”

The duo was blown off the ship with their Pokémon as their shouts were heard while they were launched through the sky.

“TEAM ROCKET’S BAFFLED OFF AGAIN!!!”

The crowd erupted in cheers as the Pikachu hopped onto the boy’s shoulder while he offered it a smile and a pat on the head.  It wasn’t long before the boy was swarmed by the crowd as they all cheered and shouted at how incredible a trainer he was and how honored they were to be in his presence and other platitudes as the blonde tried to wrap her head around everything that happened before remembering about Joel being caught in the net that Allison had launched.  She rushed over to find the struggling Pokémon Breeder before she finally managed to help him out.

“Oh my gosh!  I’m so sorry about all this!  Are you okay?!”

He rose out of the net chuckling as he stretched his sore body out.  “I’m fine, no thanks to anyone but you so you’re the last person that needs to apologize.”

“Oh… okay…” she answered back softly with her gaze turning to her lap.  She couldn’t stay somber for long as a familiar fairy Pokémon hopped onto her head.  She turned her gaze upward before it rolled down and landed on her lap.

“Clefairy!”

“Is that your Clefairy?”

“Huh?  Oh, well… no, not really… actually, I don’t know what it’s doing here.”  She admitted before petting the Clefairy gently on the head.  “Weren’t you supposed to be resting up at Bill’s place?”

“Fairy?”

“Maybe Clefairy wanted to look out for you, you did attract quite the trouble after all.  And you really don’t have any Pokémon?”

“Oh, no actually.  I came here from Alola to start a Pokémon journey, but I’ve been getting a bit sidetracked on my way to Pallet Town I guess.”  She explained with a nervous chuckle before turning towards the crowd.  “But I don’t get how no one else could be bothered to help you, how rude are they here?!”

“Meh, I wouldn’t take it too seriously.”  He answered with a shrug.  “Given the ‘mystery guest’ that people had been whispering about they probably just thought the Team Rocket gag was a ruse to give them a dramatic entrance.  Everyone knows that Team Rocket’s been disbanded for years now.”

“Who’s Team Rocket?”

“Huh?  Oh, I guess you wouldn’t have heard much about them outside of Kanto.  Basically, they were just a bunch of thugs who used Pokémon to get what they wanted.  Trying to gain world power or fame or something... something like that.  Anyways, there have been rumors of Team Rocket sightings, but they’ve probably just been ruses.  I mean, those two were obviously a joke, I can’t believe I got roped into it.”

“You really don’t think that this was something more serious?”

“Well,” the man scratched that back of his head in thought.  “I guess at first I thought it might have been real.  I mean, I never agreed to play a hostage role, but when I saw Red I realized they probably wanted an unsuspecting victim to really let his heroism shine.”

_Who’s Red._

_You don’t know who Red is?!_

“I… I’ve heard of that name before…”

“Well that’s not surprising,” the man stated with a chuckle.  “He’s only the League Champion here in Kanto.  Some even believe that he’s the most skilled trainer in the entire world.”

“Wait a minute!”

_He’s this super strong trainer with a Pikachu!  He singlehandedly took down a major crime organization in Kanto and rose to become the League Champion.  He’s also super cool!  I mean, you get all those trainers who brag about how good they are, but not him!  As a matter of fact… I’m not sure if I’ve ever heard him speak.   When they broadcasted his League Challenge he never talked to his Pokémon, but he would… gesture or something.  As if his movements could be felt by his Pokémon so that they would know what to do._

“That was Red!?!?”

“No doubt about it.  His outfit and mannerisms are just too on point to think it was anyone else.  No wonder the staff wanted to keep his presence a surprise, this ship is going crazy.”

“Yeah…” the blonde answered softly as she looked towards the crowd at the boy who was scratching the back of his head while he mingled with the fans before their eyes met.  His eyes suddenly turned serious as he raised a flat hand to his chin, lowered it towards Lillie and made quick gestures with his hands before he ran off the deck, releasing a Charizard from a Pokeball and flying off.

 _I wanna be a fantastic trainer just like Red._ _He's a legend._

“Fairy!”

“Whuh?”

“Fairy, fair!”

The Clefairy knocked it’s Moon stone against the blonde’s head as she rubbed the spot gingerly.  “Ow, what was tha- Hey wait!!!”

The shout came too late as the Clefairy ran off with the blonde chasing after them.  Past the doors that led to the lower level.  Past the woman who shouted at them that they needed to come back because they were about to leave soon.  Right past the exit as they ran off the gangway before the Clefairy suddenly stopped with the blonde screeching to a halt.

“Wah!  Clefairy, what are you doing?!”

“Clefairy!  Clefairy fairy fair fair fairy!”

She watched as the Pokémon pointed at the Moon stone before pointing at the peak of a mountain that was close to the direction that they had come from before-

_Once you get past Mt. Moon there’s no way back._

“Oh…” she softly spoke before kneeling down to be eye level with the fairy.  “Are you trying to take that Moon Stone to Mt. Moon?”

“Clefairy!”

The blonde smiled at the reaction, guessing she must have been right based on the response.  “Well, it sounds like it’s on my way to becoming a Pokémon trainer.  Do you want to join me?”

“Fairy!”

The Clefairy jumped up to hug the blonde as she squeezed it slightly.  “Alright then.  We’ll start our journey here together.”

“Clefairy!”

The Clefairy crawled over the blonde’s shoulder to fall into her backpack as they rummaged through it before popping out wearing a familiar pink beanie.

_You changed your clothes._

_I… well…_

_It looks really good on you._

_Really?  Thanks!  I was worried what you’d think since you said that… well… you liked my original look._

_I did, but that doesn’t mean I don’t like this._

_I’m glad.  Actually, I… I wanted you to have this…_

She ran her fingers over the beanie before the blaring sound of a ship’s horn cut through the quiet evening as the boat departed from the dock.  She watched on as the boat began to head West into the glorious sunset, creating a scene that was absolutely picturesque.

“Hey, who put the ship in my sunset?”

The blonde turned towards the voice before turning back to watch the ship.

And then she screamed.

“MINA!!!”

“Huh?”  The fellow blonde turned towards Lillie as she rubbed her forehead, inevitably smearing more paint across her face as she did so.  “Wait, I know you.  Didn’t I give you a Fairium Z crystal?”

“What are you… wait, what?!”

“Yeah, and then you went on and became the Alolan champion right?”

Lillie let her head drop as she groaned.  “That was Moon.”

“Oh, then are you here for my captain’s challenge?  I don’t actually have one yet so here’s a crystal for you too.”

“I don’t have a Z-Ring!”

“Really?  Well, it wouldn’t hurt to hang onto it.  It might come in handy later.”

“Yes, I’m certain it will,” the blonde answered with absolute venom as she took the crystal with Clefairy climbing onto her shoulder to examine it.  She released a sigh.  “All in all, it is rather nice to see a familiar face again.  I have been feeling a bit lonely here.”

“Yeah, it is hard being away from home for so long,” the fairy captain answered as she took another stroke of her brush to her canvas.  “But at least the S.S. Anne stops at places like this that offers great inspiration for my artwork.”

“Yeah…” the blonde answered dreamily before turning in shock.  “Wait!  You were on the S.S. Anne?!”

“Yeah, why?”

The blonde pointed towards the end of the dock where the paint streaked woman cast her gaze before following it to the ship that was now sailing off into the horizon.

“Oh… so that’s who put a boat in my sunset.  Well, I guess that means I’m staying here for a while.”

“How can you be so calm about this?!”

“Well, there’s not much I can do about it now.  Besides, it’s not like this is anything new, no one will miss me too much.”

“Huh?”  The blonde paused as she hugged one of her elbows.  “But… what about your parents?  And your duties as a captain?”

“Again, my parents are used to me going missing for weeks at a time.  I can just call them and let them know what’s up.  Besides, Nanu always carries a bunch of extra Fairium Z crystals just in case.  Again, these things happen pretty often.”

“Hm…” the blonde paused for a moment, rocking from heel to toe as she searched for the best words to use in order to convey her next thought.  “Well… would you want to come with me?  I’m starting a Pokémon journey and was just about to head to Pallet Town.”

“Huh?  Hm…” the Alolan captain raised her brush in thought, causing paint to splatter across her chin before she shrugged her shoulders.  “Why not?  I might find more things to paint if I join you.  Sounds like a good idea.”

The blonde cheered as she hopped in place.  “Awesome!  Okay, so we need to get through Diglett Cave to get to Pallet Town so I can talk to Professor Oak and then we can head to Mt. Moon for Clefairy.”

“Hm?  Are you planning on releasing that Clefairy?”

“Wha- No!  I mean… not technically.  This Clefairy isn’t actually mine.”  The blonde answered as she grabbed the Clefairy off her shoulder to hold it.  “Why did you think I was releasing it?”

“Mt. Moon is said to be the place where all Clefairy come from so a lot of people release them there.”

“Oh,” the blonde stated softly as she turned her gaze to the fairy Pokémon.  “So, you’re trying to get home then?”

“Fairy?”

The blonde gave a soft smile as she ruffled the Clefairy’s head before taking the pink beanie back with the Clefairy reaching for it causing her to giggle.  “You really like this hat, don’t you Clefairy?”

“Fairy!”

She chuckled again before handing it back as the Clefairy hurriedly put it back on its head.  “Alright, I’ll let you hold onto it for now.”

“Clefairy!”

“And done!”

They turned to the fairy captain who blew over her painting to help it dry faster before putting away her collapsible easel and turning back to the duo.  “Well, we better get a hotel.  No sense camping if we’re in a town.”

“Only sensible thing you’ve said all night.”

“Jeez you sound like my parents.”

The blonde giggled before walking back towards the city with the largest smile that could grace her face.

“Well, we'd better get going then," the blonde answered with a smile.

"After all, tomorrow's bound to be a crazy day."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After playing Let's Go Eevee I just had to make Mina a companion character XD. ANyways, thanks so much for reading and please feel free to leave comments or kudos and look forward to the next chapter!


	4. The Dig Down to Pallet Town

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! Welcome to another chapter of Pokemon: Lillie Version! Thank you folks for all your support, I hope you've all enjoyed the read so far. Just a side note I started an original fic and posted it. It's called Super Gay Girl, which I feel like should be pretty self explanatory there. Anyways, feel free to check it out and I hope you enjoy this latest installation of Pokemon: Lillie Version!

She couldn’t believe this was happening, right before she was going to start her own Pokémon journey and everything!

Well, okay, she’d been saying that a lot lately, and yes!  She  _did_ know she couldn’t officially start her journey until she checked in with Professor Oak.  She knew that already!

But, she also knew that Diglett Cave was the only way to Pallet Town and that, unfortunately, was no longer an option with the yellow CAUTION tape that was sprawled across the cave entrance with a DO NOT ENTER sign greeting them in front.

The blonde gave a sigh.  “What should we do now Mina?”

“Wow, these are some really cool stalagmites in here.”

“Yes, this is a- wait a minute,” Green eyes turned to Mina who was standing right beyond the tape before Lillie screamed.  “MINA!!!  What are you doing?!?!”

She tilted her head as the infinitely indifferent gaze of the fairy captain bore into her.  “What are _you_ doing?  You’re not going to get anywhere if you’re standing out there.”

“But you can’t just trespass!”  The blonde shouted as she looked around her desperately.  “You could get in trouble!”

“Why would it get me in trouble?  I’m a Pokémon Captain on the most dangerous island in Alola, and this tape just tells me that I should keep my Pokémon ready.”

“Actually, it says ‘Do Not _Enter_ ,’” the blonde seethed as her shoulders tensed.  “In case you weren’t sure how to read.”

“If it were really serious then they would have someone warding us away as opposed to leaving some tape around,” MIna announced as she continued to explore the cave mouth.  “Besides, you’re never going to become a trainer if you’re too scared to enter the places that Pokémon live in.”

“I’m not scared!”  The blonde shouted before she crossed her arms.  “I’m just being considerate of police decisions.”

“Well, whatever you say.  Let me know if Machop guy ever gets that land stomped down for his new building.”

“Hey, wait-!”

But the fairy captain simply disappeared in the cave as the blonde huffed.  “Oh well, we can just wait here until whatever is going on finishes, right Clefairy?”

“Fairy!”

The Clefairy struggled out of her arms as she tried to stop them but, just like Mina, decided to blatantly ignore the signs and warnings and rushed straight into the cave as the blonde stomped her foot.  “Fine!  You can just get to Mt. Moon on your own, see if I care!”

She muttered irritably to herself as she turned away from the cave entrance.  “Stupid, hyperactive fairy people.”

She kept her arms crossed as she heard the sound of a door swinging open before a familiar old man with a Machop walked out.  “Oh, hello there deary!  Did I tell you that I’m going to build my own building here one day?  I’ve been working diligently for almost two years now to get the ground stomped flat for building.”

The blonde groaned before rushing towards the cave.  “Mina!  Clefairy!  Wait for me!”

She rushed towards the yellow tape as she crawled between the spaces to find herself in a large cavern as the fairy captain stood in the center with the Clefairy before turning and sending the Pokémon a smile.  “See, I told you she would show up.”

“Clefairy!”

The Clefairy rushed towards the blonde with arms outstretched and pleading eyes as they stretched further on tiptoes.  “Fairy?”

The blonde sighed before picking up the Pokémon and ruffling their head that still held her friend’s old hat.  “What would you do without me?”

The response was muffled as the fairy Pokémon nuzzled deeper into her arms and she gave a light chuckle before Mina’s voice cut through.  “So, are you ready to do what it takes to be a real Pokémon trainer?”

“You mean trespassing?”

The woman offered a shrug before revealing the ladder she was standing in front of.  “It means doing whatever it takes to move forward.  To not let any obstacle stop you, but also to know that you will have to learn to be stronger than those obstacles in order to move forward.  It’s an unwritten rule, but the world doesn’t belong to anyone, which means that trainers cannot be barred from any area, but that also means that any dangers that a trainer walks into they are solely responsible.”

For the first time in her life, Lillie swore that the captain’s eyes turned serious as she turned her gaze towards Lillie.  “Are you ready to accept that responsibility?”

“I…” she paused, turning back to the Clefairy who looked just as curious about her answer as the captain was, but that was all it took.  Just knowing that _Clefairy_ was there.  She cleared her throat and shook her head.  “I’m ready, let’s do this.”

The captain nodded solemnly as she stepped to the side.   “After you.”

Lillie sighed, letting the Clefairy down as she moved towards the ladder before dropping down to the lower level where her jaw dropped.  The Clefairy hopped on her head before Mina showed up behind her.  “Whoa, this is a mess.”

The blonde shook her head before turning on the captain.  “Of course it looks like a mess!  This is exactly why we should’ve just stayed in Vermillion City, there’s no way we can get through this!”

Lillie pointed down the tunnel, just ten feet ahead of them was the sight of a massive rockfall that obviously no one had taken the time to clear out yet.  Of course, Lillie was certain that if this was the only route to Pallet Town from any city east of Mt. Moon then _someone_ should’ve cared enough to clear it out.

“We’ll be fine.”

“How can we possibly be fine!  And how could I buy into your ridiculous ‘trainers can go anywhere,’ talk.  Isn’t that precisely what the trial guides were for?!”

“What are you talking about?  Why would there be trial guides on Poni Island?”

Lillie immediately moved to retort before she paused to think on the statement.  Mina must have spent most of her time as a trainer on Poni Island, which was already home to the most fearsome Pokémon in Alola.  If you were on that island, then it was probably assumed that you were either strong enough to get wherever you wanted to on that island or smart enough to not leave Seafolk Village.  The blonde released a sigh as she hugged Clefairy slightly tighter.  “Okay, ignore that comment, but how are you planning on getting past this?”

The fairy captain stretched her arms and cracked her knuckles and neck as she turned back to the landfall.  “I’m gonna show these rocks I’m stronger.”

“Wha- but how?!”

“You might wanna step back.”

“Ah-…” Lillie paused, watching as Mina shuffled through her bag before deciding to take her advice.  She took a step back and watched anxiously as Mina dug through her belongings.  It was amazing just how much could fit in one of those bags, though Lillie wasn’t expecting what the fairy captain eventually pulled out.

“Mina… please don’t tell me-”

“Alright, time to put this thing to work.”

Lillie began to panic as she watched the woman step towards the landfall with a giant mallet.  She couldn’t stop the screaming plea that escaped her as Mina readied a swing.

“Mina, don’t!  Don’t you know what will-!”

“ROOOOCK SMASH!”

BOOOOOM

The cave reverberated as Lillie fell to the ground to cover her head.  “This is it Clefairy!  I’m sorry I couldn’t get you home!”

“Fair…”

She kept the Clefairy close to her as she awaited the end that Mina had assuredly brought upon them.

…

“Hm, well that didn’t do anything.”

“Huh?”  Lillie rose to her feet as she looked around.  The shakes had subsided and it appeared that there were no cave-ins created by the captain’s rash behavior.  She released a sigh as she held Clefairy close.  “Thank goodness.”

“Maybe I just didn’t hit it rig-“

“NOOOO!!!”

The sound of rumbling spread through the cave as Lillie flinched in response before a few measly pebbles skipped down the rockfall to land before Mina.  They both looked at the pebbles momentarily before Lillie began to seethe.  “Are you insane?!”

Mina shrugged.  “I guess it depends on who you’re using as your standard of sanity.”

“Well, I would know better than to maul a fresh rockfall!  You could’ve started a cave-in!”

“I suppose that’s true, but if it were up to you we’d wait outside this cave for who knows how long for someone else to take care of this mess.”

“Which is precisely what we should’ve done!”

“If you say so,” the captain responded indifferently.  “Of course, by my standard of sanity, you’re a bit too uptight.”

“Excuse me!”

“Anyways, if we’re not going through the rockfall, then we may as well look for a way around it.”

Lillie heaved a sigh as she shook her head.  “Well, good luck with that.  If you need me, I’ll be back at-”

“Found it.”

“Ah, what?”

“Up there,” Mina answered in her usual mellow tone as she pointed to the top of a craggy cliff that looked like it could lead past the fall.   Lillie wasn’t impressed.

“Right, of course, just at the top of a cliff that we have no way of getting-”

“Rock climb!”

CLANK

Lillie watched as Mina tugged on the end of the rope to make sure that it was secure.  “Time to go up.”

“Mina, honestly, why do you have a grappling hook?”

“Don’t you know that some of the best views are at high vantage points?  I’ve gotta be prepared for wherever inspiration takes me.”

“Oookaaayy,” Lillie relented, admitting to herself that the explanation was actually sensible, at least, as sensible as Mina could be.  “But what’s with the giant hammer then?”

“It’s for sculpting.”

Lillie smacked her face as she began to wonder if she’d given the fairy captain too much credit.

“Any other questions?”

“Not that I’d bother to ask, why?”

“Because I was going to ask you when you were finally planning on coming up here.”

Lillie turned her gaze towards where Mina  _was_ before following the rope up to where she had arrived at.  “Uh… um…”

“Come on Lillie, I’ll wait right here for you.”

“I… ah… uh…” Lillie couldn’t find the words.  She’d never actually had to scale a cliff before, nor did she remember Moon or Hau doing so either.  Of course, she wasn’t counting their trek up Mt. Lanakila since elevators were provided there, so why didn’t Kanto have them?

“Hey, Lillie, are you okay?”

“Clefairy?”

Lillie paused as she looked at the small Pokémon that was snuggled in her arms wearing Moon’s old beanie.

She couldn’t hesitate.

“Hey, you’re not afraid of heights are you?  I can try rock smash agai-”

“Nope!  Nope!  I’m coming!  No need to go hammer crazy in here haha,” Lillie tried to joke awkwardly, but it fell flat.  At least when she looked up from the bottom of the rope the cliff looked a little slanted and there were plenty of footholds so it wouldn’t be as difficult as climbing a sheer cliff.  She gulped deeply before the Clefairy bounced out of her arms and she called after it.

“Wha- Clefairy?!”

The Pokémon hopped up the rocks before pointing back at the rope.  “Clefairy!  Fairy fair!”

She watched as the Clefairy frantically pointed and gestured towards the rope and Mina as Lillie tensed slightly.  “If you say so…”

She gingerly reached for the rope, letting her fingers glide across its weaving before finally taking hold of it.  She tightened her grip, letting her fingers dig into the strand before she gave a sigh.  She could do this!  She just needed to-

“Fairy?”

She looked towards the voice as she saw she had climbed up the first set of rocks.  A nervous chuckle escaped her.  She was doing it!  Just one step at a time!  She could do it!  She was just a few steps away and-

The rocks crumbled as she lost her footing.  A light scream escaped her as she braced herself for a fall.

“Don’t worry I got you.”

She opened her eyes as she saw the fairy captain who had a tight grip on her wrist before helping her up.

“Um… thanks…”

“Anytime.”

Mina turned to head forward as Lillie hugged one of her elbows before turning back.  “W-Wait, Mina?”

“Hm… What’s up?”

The grip tightened around her elbow as she turned back towards the cliff.  “I… I’m sorry.  I’m probably such a burden to you.  I mean, I belittle your ideas and then you-”

“Lillie, there’s no need for that,” MIna responded as she offered a soft smile.  “Besides, I know I’m not everyone’s typical company.  I do things differently, but I like the way I do things.”

Green eyes turned towards MIna, feeling relieved at the captain’s sheer support before she shook her head.  “I just… I’m not sure if I’m cut out for this kinda thing.”

“But you were at Vast Poni Canyon, right?”

Lillie hummed as she gave a shrug.  “I suppose, but I was really just following Moon.  I’ve never done a journey on my own.”

“Well, neither did Moon if you were with them, right?”

Lillie turned to gaze at the captain as she pondered the thought.  “You know, I guess I never thought of that.”

“That’s what’s nice about being a Pokémon trainer,” Mina answered nonchalantly.  “As long as your Pokémon are with you, you’re never really alone.”

Lillie let her green gaze fall as she felt a small tug on her skirt.

“Clefairy?”

A soft smile spread across her lips as she moved a fallen strand of hair behind her ear.  “I’m sorry, I’m stalling and being melodramatic.”

“Clefairy.”

She laughed at the small Pokémon’s admonishing tone before she offered a hand.  “Well, I won’t keep you waiting much longer.  Let’s get going.”

“Clefairy!”

The Pokémon cheered as they rushed up the blonde’s arm to balance on her shoulder.  “Fairy!”

“Yes!  Forward and onward!”  Lillie agreed as she walked through the small crevice that led past the rockfall.  The other side didn’t look much clearer, but there was at least a way to walk around the fallen boulders.  She also noticed that there were bridges they could cross so that they wouldn’t have to worry about being back to ground level.  Of course, she wasn’t sure where the exit to the place was either, but it shouldn’t be too hard to find it if they just followed the path.

“So, which way do we go Lillie?”

“Huh?  Wait, why are you asking me?!”

“It’s your journey, right?”

Lillie locked gazes with the captain for a moment before she gave a stern nod.  “Let’s take the bridge.  If someone took the time to build it then it must lead somewhere.”

“Sounds good,” Mina responded simply as Lillie led the way.  She couldn’t help but be curious as she drew up comparisons from what she had known of Diglett Tunnel in Alola.  She knew the path there was completely created by the Diglett who resided there, which she had heard was also true of Diglett Cave in Kanto.  So what kind of Diglett knew how to build a bridge?

They began to cross the bridge, noticing slight movements in the rocks beneath them that Lillie found increasingly concerning.  “Mina, have you been hearing anything below us?”

“I wouldn’t worry too much about it.  This is Diglett Cave right?  We’re bound to find some Diglett then.”

Lillie gave an affirming hum as she kept her eyes straight ahead.  No looking down and starting to panic about the drop, oh no!  She was going to face her challenges head on like a true Pokémon trainer!

And then the shaking began.

She held fast to the rope railing before she turned back to the captain.  “Mina?”

“Run!”

They both rushed forward, picking up speed as the bridge rustled beneath them before they saw a Diglett on the other side that buried itself back underground as it tried to raise one of the stakes that was holding the bridge in place.  The stake plopped out, causing the bridge to shift as the blonde screamed.

“We can still make it!  We just gotta climb across!”

The Diglett popped out to glare at the two of them before Lillie got an idea.

“Clefairy!  Go distract the Diglett!”

The Clefairy cried out as they climbed to the top rope and ran across before landing a hit against the Diglett.

“Keep it up Clefairy!  Use Doubleslap!”

The Clefairy rushed towards the Diglett, slapping past and around the Diglett, but the accuracy wasn’t as important as keeping the Diglett away from the bridge.  “You’re doing great Clefairy!  Keep it up!”

Lillie groaned as she climbed across the ropes, managing to use them like monkey bars as she and Mina made their way across.  “Just a little longer.”

The Diglett seemed to hear as they turned towards them, eyes ablaze before they moved to knock the final stake off while the blonde screamed.

“Clefairy use Sing!”

A wondrous melody erupted from the Pokémon as the Diglett’s movements slowed, growing drowsy from the melody before their movements were completely halted, giving the two the time they needed to get to the other cliff.  Lillie immediately rushed towards the Clefairy and gave them a giant hug.

“Thank you so much Clefairy!  You were great!”

“Fairy!”

The captain arrived as she knelt next to her.  “You were pretty great too Lillie.  That was some quick thinking.”

“Thanks Mina!”

Mina hummed in response as they reveled in their victory before the sound of rustling returned their attention to the wild Pokémon.  Lillie hurried up to her feet and rushed towards the Diglett.  “Are you okay?!”

The Diglett shook their head vigorously before turning back to Lillie and shouting vehemently.  “Diglett!  Dig dig Diglett!!!”

“Clefairy, fair!”

The Diglette turned towards the Clefairy before starting the shouting match over again.  “Diglett!  Diglett let Dig!”

“Fairy fairy, Cefairy!”

“Mina, what’s going on?”

“They’re discussing something.”

“I know that much,” Lillie huffed.  “But what are they talking about?”

MIna simply shrugged her shoulders and hummed in uncertainty while the two Pokémon continued their talk.  Eventually, the Diglett disappeared underground with the Clefairy shouting after them as the two ran towards the Pokémon.

“Clefairy, what happened?!”

“Fairy!  Clefairy fairy fair Clef Clefairy!!!”

“Um…” Lillie tilted her head as she completely blanked.  “Can you maybe repeat that please?”

The Clefairy sighed before grabbing the hat off their head.  “Fairy.”

“Hat?”

The Clefairy smacked their head before putting the hat back on.  “Clefairy!  Fairy, fair fair, fairy Clefa, fa fairy!”

Lillie tilted her head as she watched the Pokémon gesture to the hat and the rocks and themselves before the blonde thought she got the idea.  “That Diglett… lost their friend in a rockfall… and then we showed up?”

“Fairy!”

“Hm… that gives me an idea.”

Lillie looked up before Mina pulled out a Pokéball.  “Let’s go Clefable.”

“Clefable!”

Lillie silently oohed at the Pokémon as the captain wore the same indifferent look she always wore.  “Clefable, do you think you can help us sleuth a missing Diglett?”

“Fable!”

The Pokémon’s ears twitched before it rushed forward and dug its hands into the ground causing a Diglett to pop out.  Lillie knelt to talk to them.  “Um… are you looking for a friend you might’ve been separated from?”

“Diglett!”

The Pokémon immediately ducked back into the ground as Lillie released a sigh.

“Well, that was a dud.  Let’s keep looking.”

“Wait, what?”

“Clefable, you getting any-”

“No, Mina wait!  Are you seriously going to try to talk to every Diglett in this cave?”

“Why not?  How hard could it be to find a Diglett in DIglett Cave?”

Lillie groaned.  “It wouldn’t be hard if we were looking for  _any_ Diglett.  But finding a specific Diglett in a cave full of Diglett…”

Mina hummed as she grabbed her Pokéball.  “I get you.  Anyway, you can come back Clefable, thanks so much for your help.”

The Clefable cheered before returning to their Pokéball.  “Alright Lillie, what’s the plan?”

Lillie hummed in thought.  Clefairy said that the rockfall was important to the Diglett, and then they arrived.  There had to be a connection…

She looked down into the canyon, the rocks that were on the ground didn’t look like they were part of a major rockslide.  They were isolated with varying sizes and- was one of them moving?

She rushed towards the edge before sliding down to the lower level and hurrying to the rock as Mina followed quickly.

“Lillie!  What are you doing?!”

“I think the Diglett might be under this rock!”

“What?!”

Lillie groaned as she tried to push the rock.  “The Diglett’s here!  We gotta get the rock off!”

“Oh, right!”  Mina moved to help push the boulder as the two of them managed to get it out of the way before.

“Dig…”

“Dang, they’re in rough shape.”

“That’s why I always keep these handy!”

The ever-prepared Lillie rose a handful of potions up to the air before taking one and applying it to the Diglett.  “Come on Diglett, please be okay.”

She applied the spray to the Pokémon but it seemed like it wasn’t going to do any good.  She sighed as Mina wrapped an arm around her shoulder.  “Lillie…”

Lillie gave a soft hum as she refused to meet the captain’s gaze.

“You can look Lillie, it’ll be alright.”

“But…”

“Dig…lett…?”

She looked up to watch as the small Pokémon slowly rose up to full height as they began to look around.  “Dig… Lett… Dig?”

Lillie restrained her cracking laugh as she watched the Diglett slowly move quicker as they began to look around.  “Diglett… Dig… Lett?”

“Diglett!!!”

The previous Diglett popped out of the ground with a cheer as they began to rush around the newfound one.  “Diglett, Diglett, Diglett!”

“DIglett!”

“Clefairy!”

The Clefairy jumped off of Lillie’s shoulder as it rushed to get in the conversation.  “Fairy, fairy, Clefairy!”

“Dig?”

“Diglett!”

The first Diglett turned towards the duo as they gave a slight bow.  “Diglett, dig!”

“Huh?”  Lillie turned towards the Clefairy who seemed to motion for her to say something as she began to stutter.  “Oh, um… it’s no worries!  I’m glad you have your friend back.”

“Dig!”

“Diglett!”

They both popped back underground while Lillie gave a sigh and Mina gave her a soft smile.  “Lillie, you’re doing great.”

“You think so?”  She gave her friend a hopeful smile before the Clefairy jumped on her head.

“Fairy!”

She laughed as she grabbed the Clefairy from off her head.  “Well, if the both of you say so,” she turned her head towards the end of the tunnel.  “Guess I’m not doing too bad for not being an official trainer yet.”

“Well, we’re pretty close to that moment now, aren’t we?”

The blonde gave a laugh, but it was more out of nervous excitement than anything else.  They were at the exit to Diglett Cave.

Pallet Town, here she comes.


	5. Battle in Front of the Abandoned Gym

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! Welcome back to another chapter of Pokemon: Lillie Version. I just want to say thank you to all of you who continue to support this fic. I hope everyone enjoys reading it as much as I enjoy writing it and please drop a kudos or comment, I love getting the feedback. Anyways, enjoy this next chapter!

They had finally made it!

Well, they had just gotten out of Diglett Cave, but Lillie figured that was reason enough to celebrate as she stretched out in the sunlight.

“Whoa, check out this tree.”

Lillie gave a sigh.  Mina had been helpful, but she could still be a handful at times.

“Yes Mina?  What about the tree-?”

“Cut!”

There was the sound of shattering bark as the blonde covered her ears.  “Mina!  What was that for?!”

“What?  Now we can go through.”

“Clefairy!”

Lillie sighed.  How did she get mixed up in this crowd again?  “That’s nice Mina, but we don’t need to explore further in the woods.  We just need to head straight to Pallet Town from here.”

“Excuse me, who might you two be?”

They turned to find a man with messy black hair and a lab coat who was looking at them curiously.

“Oh, I’m Mina, and this is my friend Lillie.”

“Wait!  Mina, we’re not supposed to talk to strangers!”

“Well he’d already know my name after you shouted it like that, wouldn’t he?”

“But-!”

“Wait, is your name Lillie?  As in, Lillie from the Alola Region?”

The girl in question took a shaky step back, trying hard to find her voice.  “Y-Yes…”

“Oh good, you were able to make it!  Professor Oak has been worried about you.”

“Wait,” Lillie paused as she gave a skeptical look.  “You know Professor Oak?”

“Of course!  I’m one of his lab assistants after all!”

“Well, isn’t that convenient.”

Lillie couldn't help but scoff at the fairy captain’s comment.  “Well, I suppose it is.”  She turned her gaze back towards the man.  But, why are you all the way out here?  Is this Pallet Town?”

“Huh?  Oh no, you just found our outpost outside of Diglette Cave.  Pallet Town is still a ways south, but this route is convenient for getting between Pewter and Viridian without going through the forest.”

“That is convenient.”

“It would be more so if the lab was closer,” the up and coming Pokemon trainer muttered as she crossed her arms.

“Well... I could take you there in my car.”

“You can?!”

“Of course!”

Lillie cheered before rushing over to the man.  “Oh, thank you!  That’s fantastic, right Mina!”

“I’ll pass.”

“What?!?!”

The fairy captain gave a shrug as she tightened her shoulder strap.  “You can go ride in the car if you want, but I’d rather walk.  There’re lots of adventures you can miss if you’re in a vehicle.”

Lillie paused to look at the captain for a moment before turning back to the man.  “I suppose I have to agree with Mina.  Thank you for the offer though.”

“You’re changing your mind?”

“I hope you’ll forgive me for my indecisiveness, but I came here to get stronger and have an adventure,” she gave a soft smile before turning back to her friend.  “If I were to miss out on even a single adventure during my time here then I know I’d never forgive myself.  I may be tired from our adventures in Diglett Cave, but I can’t make excuses for myself.  I’m here to become a real Pokémon trainer, and I can’t miss the opportunity of meeting new Pokémon.”

“Clefairy!”

Lillie chuckled as she rubbed the Clefairy’s head.  “Yeah, just like how I met you.”

“So, it’s settled then?”

“Yep,” Lillie announced as she grabbed the straps of her backpack.  “I’m joining you on foot.”

“Sounds good.”

“Say, if you’re heading to Pallet Town would you mind if I ask a favor?”

Lillie hummed to affirm the question before the man continued.  “Even though you’re using this route as a shortcut to Pallet Town it’ll only get you as far as Viridian City.   When you get there would you mind stopping by the PokéMart?  I got word that the professor had a package arrive there.”

“Weren’t you just going to drive us to Pallet town?”

The man blanched at Mina’s question as he rubbed the back of his head.  “I mean, well, I was, but you declined and-”

“We’ll pick it up for you.  It’s on the way, right?”

“Really?  Thank you!  I don’t have much but, here you should have this.”

The man handed Lillie an item that she looked over thoroughly, finding absolutely no significance in the item.  “A flashlight?”

“Yeah, if you’re going on a journey then you’re bound to come across Dark Cave.  Its name is rather literal with it being pitch-black inside, so you’ll want to have that handy.”

“Hey, check it out, mine looks exactly like it!”

The fairy captain pulled out her own flashlight as she began to randomly flash the trees near them as Lillie gave a sigh.  “Well, thank you for all your help.”

“It’s no problem.  And if you need any more assistance you can talk to me or Oak’s other assistants.  We tend to be around.”

“Thank you.  You take care now.”

“Later assistant man.”

“Take care, and stay safe!”

Lillie gave a polite wave as the fairy captain simply walked straight on ahead.  The path wasn’t too long, though Lillie remained alert in case there was a run-in with a wild Pokémon on their way south, but they never seemed to leave the forest.  Eventually they cam across another skinny tree that Mina hacked to pieces as they walked into town.

“What are you rapscallions doing around here?!”

“Huh?  What?”

“We’re walking down this road sir,” Mina explained causally.   “What are you doing here old man?”

“What am I doing?  Well, I’ll tell you what I’m doing!  I’m just trying to have a peaceful walk around the forest entrance without random whippersnappers bullying an elder like me!”

“What?  But, we would never-!”

“Oh, it’s just been awful!  First my coffee machine breaks down, then some hooligans claiming to be Team Rocket minions demanded I reopen the gym and now you two are harassing me!  What else does the world want from me?!”

“Wait a minute," realization dawned on Lillie as she redirected her attention towards the man.  "What do you mean by Team Rocket?!”

“I already told you, they’re at the gym!  What more do you want from me?!”

“Lillie?  What’s going on?”

“We have to go to the gym!”  Lillie announced as she ran in the direction towards town before turning back quickly to give a bow.  “Thank you so much for your help, I apologize for the bother we caused you.”

She didn’t wait for a response before running off again, searching the town frantically though with little effort since it was rather small.  The Team Rocket uniforms did stand out, as did the familiar duo that sat on the edge of a ledge with an Electabuzz laying flat on the ground asleep and the Magmar stuffing their face full of food.

“What do we do now Alison?  This gym was our only lead.”

“I know that Clay!  I’m trying to think!”

“Hey!”

They both turned quickly towards the voice before immediately getting into a defensive stance.

“What are you doing here?!”

“That’s exactly what I was going to ask _you_!”  The blonde retorted to Clay as she set her hands on her hips.  “And why are you harassing people around here?!”

“That’s none of your business!”  Alison shouted back.  “And if you’ve got a problem with us then you’d better prepare for trouble!”

“And make it double!”

“You’re not going to say the same catchphrase you did on the boat, are you?”

They ignored her question as they both began to pose dramatically in front of the ledge.  “To infest the world with devastations!”

“To incite all peoples within our nation!”

“Wait a minute, that’s not your line!”

“Well you don’t know your lines either!”

The two began to bicker amongst each other as Lillie simply watched on dumbstruck.

“Clefairy?”

She numbly pet the top of her Pokemon's head as her green eyes remained transfixed on the scene ahead.  “I don’t know Clefairy.  I really don’t know.”

There was the sound of footsteps approaching her, but she didn’t bother turning to see who it was as she was.  There was a pause beside her as she knew the newcomer must have been just as confused by the sight of the too possible criminal syndicate members having a fit while an Electabuzz snored contentedly to the side and a Magmar continued licking crumbs off their plate.  Eventually, the newcomer decided to make their presence known.

“What’s going on Lillie?”

“I’ll tell you the same thing I told Clefairy," she answered without moving her gaze.  "I don’t know.”

Mina hummed before turning back to the duo.  “Hey!  Weird people!”

“WHO ARE YOU CALLING WEIRD!!!”

“What are you two doing here?  You’re blocking the entrance to the gym.”

“Psh, as if it makes any difference!  The gym’s closed.”

“What!”

Lillie couldn’t stay silent after that last comment.  “But, if this gym is closed, then how am I supposed to battle the leader to continue my journey.”

“Well, I don’t know anything about the gym leader, but I can tell you your journey ends here.”

“Yeah, we won’t let you get away after humiliating us on the S.S. Anne.  Go Electabuzz!”

“Let’s do this Magmar!”

They both posed with their arms outstretched, sending their Pokémon off to battle as the two Pokémon blatantly ignored the orders.  Sweat began to bead across their foreheads before they rushed to their respective Pokémon.  Clay grabbed the plate from Magmar and chucked it to the side as he pleaded with the Pokémon to attack while Alison frantically shouted at Electabuzz while spraying them with an awakening to get them into the fight.  The Pokémon suddenly perked up before assuming fighting positions with their trainers resuming their dramatic poses.

“Alright let’s do this!  Magmar use Flamethrower!”

“Electabuzz, use Thundershock!”

Magmar took a deep inhale while Electabuzz began charging electricity in their fur before they both let loose their attacks.  Lillie began to panic, pulling Clefairy closer to her and turning around to shield them from the blast as she struggled to get out and fight.

“Clefable, use Light Screen.”

“Fable!”

There was the deafening sound of roaring flames and crackling lightning as Lillie turned around to see the fairy captain standing amidst the flashing lights that the Clefable managed to suppress before they disappeared altogether.  She rose to her feet before softly murmuring her admiration of Mina when the captain called her out.

“Hey, you can’t be a trainer if you don’t let your Pokémon battle you know.”

“Huh?”

The Clefairy struggled within her arms before managing to pop themself out and rushing towards the Clefable as Mina addressed her.

“It’s noble of you to want to protect Clefairy, but you have to let them battle so that they can grow.”

“But… but Clefairy’s not really my Pokémon.  I’m just trying to help them get to Mt. Moon.”

A soft chuckle escaped Mina before she turned back to the fairy Pokémon.  “It may just be me, but I think Clefairy is just as determined to help you grow as a trainer as you are to help them get home.”

Lillie paused, she had never thought that the Clefairy would actually be concerned about _her_ journey.  She turned towards the small fairy Pokémon as they caught each other’s eyes and Clefairy gave a bright smile.  A soft giggle escaped Lillie before the captain turned back to the scene ahead.  “So, you mind helping me out?  These two look like they’re waiting to be taught some proper Pokémon etiquette.”

“Ready whenever you are!”

The smoke cleared as the sight of the two Rocket members returned.  “What?  That didn’t do anything!”

“Well then try it again!  Electabuzz use Thunder Punch!”

“Magmar, use Fire Punch!”

The two ran alongside each other, powering up opposite hands before leaping in the air to bring their fists down on their opponents.

“Clefairy, use defense curl!”

“Fairy!”

WHOOOOOSH

Both the Pokémons' fists came down as the Clefairy took the attacks head on, holding their ground before grabbing both of the fists and turning to look at them.

“Now Clefairy, use sing!”

The Clefairy sang, sending both of them into a deep sleep before they both crashed to the ground as Clay tore at his hair.

“How dare you!  You can’t just put our Pokémon to sleep like that!  Do you have any idea how hard it was to get them to battle in the first place?!”

“Forget about that Clay, I still have some awakenings left.  We can keep this-!”

“Clefable, use Moonblast.”

“CLEEEFABLE!!!”

BOOOOOOM

“TEAM ROCKET’S CRASHING OFF AGAIN!!!”

TING

Clefairy and Clefable cheered as Lillie ran off to congratulate them.  “Fantastic job you two!  You were both incredible!”

“You know, I’m pretty sure that wasn’t the Team Rocket exit line.”

“Huh?  What does that matter Mina?”

The fairy captain simply offered a shrug before turning back towards her Clefable.  “Awesome job out there, partner.  You should get some rest.”

The Clefable cheered before dispersing in a red light and returning to their Pokéball as Lillie turned to her own Pokémon.  “What about you Clefairy?  Are you hurt?”

“Clefairy!”

She released a sigh before turning a smile back towards her partner.  “Good to hear.”

Mina offered the two a soft smile before turning to look off the ledge.  “Man, the view is really great here.  You can even see Pallet Town from here.”

“Yeah… wait, what?”

The captain pointed straight south as Lillie rose to her feet.  “See those houses just past the blue roof?  That’s the only town south of here before the ocean.  It looks like it’s straight downhill from here.”

“We’re almost there…” Lillie stated with a sigh as a lazy smile crossed her face.  “Wait, did you mention a blue roof?”

“Hm?  Yeah, you mean the one right there?”

She moved her finger to the small building in front of them before Lillie cheered.  “Alright!  We just need to pick up the package and then we can head to Pallet Town!”

She jumped off the ledge with Clefairy close in tow.  It was nice that the ledge was small enough to jump down although too tall to climb back up again.  That didn’t matter though, she could worry about the abandoned gym later.  She walked straight into the door, breathing heavily as the sales clerk looked at her warily.

“Um… can I help you?”

“I’m here for a package for Professor Oak.  His aide on Route 2 asked me to pick it up and deliver it to him.”

The clerk laughed before shuffling through the miscellaneous items beneath the counter.  “Aw, Larry’s too lazy to deliver it himself eh?  I guess I don’t see any of Oak's other assistants coming up from Pallet Town either, you’d think he'd make them be useful once in a while.”

A light giggle escaped Lillie.  “Well, I’m sure they’re busy with something if they can’t make it here.”

“You see, you’re too understanding,” the man said with a huff as he brought a parcel to the counter.  “Making kids run around and do their errands, if this parcel was so important then someone should’ve come for it.”

“Well, I can take care of it now so it’s not on your shoulders anymore.”

“Clefairy!”

The man chuckled as he shook his head.  “Well, if you say so.  At the very least getting to Pallet Town should be easy.  It’s all downhill from here and if you take the ledges then you can get there without walking through any tall grass so you won’t have to worry about running into any Pokémon on your way down.”

“Hey, that is rather convenient.  Thank you so much!”

“Hey, thanks for delivering the package.  You stay safe now.”

“Of course!”

She moved to head out before Mina walked in the door right in front of her.  “Where are you going?  I thought you needed to pick something up.”

“Already got it!  Now we can head to Pallet Town!”

“Alright, just let me restock my paints real fast-”

“Sorry, this is a Pokémon store.  We don’t sell paints here.”

“That’s a bummer, anyways, guess we’re off to Pallet town.”

Lillie rolled her eyes as she followed the captain out the door.  Mina might have been a space case, but her presence was definitely growing on her.

“Fairy!”

She turned to the Clefairy who climbed up to her shoulder before standing dramatically to point towards Route 1.  “Clefairy, fair!”

A soft giggle escaped the blonde.  “That’s right Clefairy, we’re heading to Pallet Town.”

She reached a hand up to pet the Pokémon before she voiced a final thought.

“And I promise Clefairy, I’ll become a great trainer that you will be proud to fight alongside before returning home.”


	6. The Town of Humble Beginnings

“We finally made it!”

Lillie stretched her free arm as Clefairy struggled to stay balanced on her head.

“Well, we’re not totally there yet.  Don’t we still need to get to Oak's lab?”

“Don’t be such a downer Mina,” Lillie responded as she hugged the package closer to her.  “It’s such a small town, that we might as well already be at his lab.”

Mina looked around, her indifferent gaze taking in the whole three building town before she offered a shrug.  “Guess I can’t argue that one.”

“Anyways, no point in staying here,” Lillie answered with a bright smile as she walked past the two small houses.  “I’d guess this building is Oak’s Lab.  It matches his description perfectly.”

“Hmmm, you sure this is it?”

“Well, there is this sign right here that says ‘Oak Pokemon Research Lab’ so I would say I’m fairly confident.”

The fairy captain hummed as she studied the sign that Lillie pointed to.  “I guess I was expecting something that would stand out more.”

“Like what?”

“Like a green roof or something.  I mean, if Pokémon Centers have red roofs and PokéMarts have blue roofs then I feel like Pokémon labs need a color theme.”

“Well, they do have a green door here if that makes you feel any better.”

Mina looked at Lillie’s playful smirk as she inspected the door and gave a shrug.  “I guess it’ll do.”

Lillie offered a laugh as she threw the open door.  “Well, let’s get this journey started!”

The door flew open as the eyes of three lab assistants snapped onto her, causing her to immediately regret her raucous entrance.

“Um… sorry for the interruption.”

“Is there something we can help you with?”

“Oh, um,” the blonde squirmed under their gazes, she didn’t mean to get so carried away.

“We’re trainers here to visit with Professor Oak.”

The lab assistant readjusted her glasses, looking curiously over the two new arrivals before realization dawned on her.  “Oh, is one of you Lillie from Alola?”

“That’s me,” the girl announced as she stepped forward.  “And I do apologize for our rude entrance, I got a little carried away.”

“You’re perfectly fine, we were just getting concerned since we expected you to be here earlier.  We hope you made it here okay.”

Lillie offered a shrug as she looked at Mina.  “I had help.”

“Clefairy!”

She giggled as she scratched Clefairy’s neck.  “And of course I had help from you too Clefairy.”

The lab assistant offered a smile.  “Well, Professor Oak should be in the back.  I think he has company right now, but I know he’ll be glad to see you made it here safely.”

“Thank you,” Lillie answered with a bow before she walked past the assistant and beyond the bookshelves.

“Blue, are you sure it’s okay for you to just leave like this?  You’ll be ignoring your duties as a gym leader.”

“Someone’s gotta do something Gramps, and something super fishy’s going on.  Besides, if there was someone worth opening the gym for, I’d know.”

“Well you might want to prepare yourself,” Professor Oak answered back as he looked past the gym leader.  “Because that trainer might be walking through the door as we speak.”

Blue turned around to look at the two blondes before he scoffed.  “Oh please, they still got a ways to go before they're ready for the big leagues.  Anyways I’ll head out now that you’ve got company, smell you later gramps.”

With a brisk stride and an air of arrogance the young man walked out as the two blondes parted to grant him a convenient exit.

“Well that was rude,” Mina commented as she looked out the door.

“Oh pay him now mind,” the professor answered as he turned towards Lillie.  “I’m glad to see you made it here safely.”

“Yeah.  Oh!  I got this package for you!”

“Oh!  Thank you!”  Oak exclaimed as he retrieved the parcel.  “I’m so glad someone finally managed to get this to me.  I’ve been stalled in my experiments without it.”

“You see,” Mina stated as she pointed at the package.  “What could Oak’s lab assistants have been doing that was so important if this stalled his experiments?”

“Well, they’ve been busy as well, it’s really not too big a deal.”  Oak answered with a laugh as he set the box aside.  “So, how has your stay in Kanto been thus far?”

“It’s been interesting,” Lillie answered with a sigh.  “I didn’t realize I couldn’t get to Pallet Town from Cerulean.”

“Oh, I must’ve forgotten to mention that,” Oak responded as he scratched the back of his head.  “Well, it looks like you figured it out at the very least.  And it looks like you even made a friend.”

“Clefairy!”

“Actually, she made two friends,” Mina stated as she slung an arm around Lillie’s shoulder.  “In case you forgot to count me.”

“Of course I included you,” the professor answered with a laugh.  “However, you’re a friend that I don’t think would fit in a Pokéball.  Does Clefairy not like them?”

“Actually, Clefairy doesn’t have a Pokéball,” Lillie explained as she pet the Pokémon’s head.  “I’m trying to return them home to Mt. Moon.”

“Oh,” Professor Oak answered in surprise.  “Then, you don’t have a Pokémon then?”

“N-No, I thought you would provide me with one.”

“Weeell,” the professor drawled as he rubbed the back of his neck.  “You see, I actually don’t have any.”

“Man,” Mina answered.  “Everyone here is about as organized as I am.”

“Well, it’s not like it was intentional,” the professor responded quickly.  “A new class from the trainer school just enrolled and, as per custom, they are each offered a Pokémon from the lab if they don’t have their own means of acquiring one.  I’m afraid I’m all out.”

“Well, that’s okay,” Lillie answered as she tried to look at the Clefairy on her head.  “If Clefairy’s with me until I get to Mt. Moon, then I still have a partner to help me on my journey until then.”

The man released a sigh as he gave a slight bow.  “Thank you so much for your understanding.  There is something I can give you to help you on your journey.”  He moved further into the lab as Lillie tilted her head at his antics while Mina simply stared blankly.

“Here, I was asked to deliver this to you.”

Lillie hummed in confusion as she took the object with Clefairy staring in awe of it.  “You… were asked to give me an egg?”

“Yes, I heard that you ran into a breeder named Joel, is that not correct?”

“Oh, from the S.S. Anne!”

“Precisely!  He asked me to give you that egg when you arrived as thanks for helping him.”

Lillie oohed over the egg as Mina inspected it carefully.  “What’s in it?”

“I’m honestly not certain,” the professor answered with a shrug.  “Joel was adamant that it be a surprise for you.  I suppose he has trust in your love of all Pokémon.  Some people can be squeamish around a Grimer.”

“That would be a surprise now wouldn’t it,” Lillie answered with a giggle as she grabbed her backpack to put the egg away.  “I’m sure whatever’s inside will be a valuable friend.  Please send Joel my gratitude the next time you see him.”

“Of course, but he wasn’t the only person with something he wanted you to have.”

Green eyes turned in bewilderment as the professor moved the box he’d just received to pull out another box.  “Here.  One of my aides actually managed to get this package to me in a timely manner.”

Lillie looked to the professor’s smirk before turning back to the box.  It was so much smaller than the parcel that she had delivered to him, she wondered what it could be.

“Well, aren’t you going to open it.”

“I’m getting to that,” Lillie answered with a glare to the fairy captain.  She turned back to the professor as she grabbed the package and opened it before tears rolled down her face.

Inside was an envelope with the words “From Hau” scrawled across the front and a malasada wrapped in aluminum foil.  She knelt down with the box before she opened the letter:

_Lillie,_

_I know I said I was going to write you a really really REALLY long letter, but as soon as I got home I didn’t know what to say anymore!  Gyah, do you understand how frustrating that was!  All I could think of was make sure to feed your Pokémon plenty of Malasadas, but then Moon told me that they didn’t have malasadas in Kanto, so I got even more frustrated!  We were able to find a malasada for you though, a mythic one even!  So, I hope you think of us when you or one of your Pokémon eats it.  We really miss you here, but Gladion’s been doing a good job at Aether Paradise and I’ve even been helping some of the former Team Skull Grunts with helping out in the community.  One of them even got a job at Mallow’s restaurant!  And Faba’s been demoted within Aether but promised to work hard to become a better person (still, I’m keeping my eye on him). Oh and my grandpa said he’d try to help Guzma become a better trainer too, maybe even help him become a captain.  I’ll admit, I wasn’t sure if it was a good idea, but he’s changed a lot, you’d be surprised!  And Moon said they regularly see Plumeria since she’s always trying to take Moon’s position as champion.  Moon hasn’t lost yet but… well… they’ve also been called into some weird missions and have been doing other things to pass the time.  I think they’re just trying to distract themselves from you being gone, but Moon’ll never admit it.  They’ve been bumming around Poni Island a lot. I think their waiting for the Battle Tree to open up to give them another distraction.  Well, I guess a distraction outside of traveling the Ultra Wormhole constantly.  I worry about them sometimes, but I know Nebby will keep them safe, just like I know Nebby misses you too.  Anyways, I guess I did manage to write something decently long in the end.  Please write back and enjoy the malasada!  We eagerly await hearing from you here in Alola._

_Your friend,_

_Hau_

She wiped the tears that fell as she removed the malasada from the bottom of the of the box before she noticed a video tape lying on the bottom.

“Professor Oak,” her voice wavered as she pulled it out of the box.  “Do you have a video player I can borrow?”

“There’s one built into the computer monitor there.  Go ahead and use that.”

“Okay.”

She wiped her tears before storing the letter and malasada in her backpack and rising to her feet.  She moved slowly to the monitor, fumbling with the video for a moment as she stared at the blank screen.  Why would Hau send her a video as well as a letter?

“Lillie!”

The tears came all over again as the familiar face popped up on screen.

“I-I mean, um… hey Lillie… How’s it going.”

Moon scoffed before trying to cover it with a cough as they turned to chuckle.  “Right, you can’t answer back.  Sorry... that was stupid… um…”

The Alolan Champion shook their head, causing tears to form in Lillie’s eyes as she’d never seen the champion look so defeated.

“Look, I know you said you needed to do this journey alone, but, honestly, I don’t know how I would’ve made it through Alola without you and Hau.”

“Mraaaoooo”

Moon giggled as they rubbed the top of the Alolan Meowth’s head.  “Or without my partner here of course.”

They sighed as the gaze they gave the Meowth turned melancholy.  “I want to tell you I miss you and wish you’d come back home, but I know that would only burden you with guilt.  So I’m going to do everything I can to help you with your journey by telling you everything you need to know.  Like how I know that you’re going to start your journey at Pallet Town so you’ll get your first Pokémon from Professor Oak.  He’s a good person to talk to if you have any questions about which Pokémon to choose first, but honestly...” Moon paused as they noogied the top of Meowth’s head who gave an exaggerated squeal.  “Sometimes your partner isn’t the Pokémon that the professor lets you choose from, but is instead the Pokémon that chooses you.”

A soft smile spread across Lillie’s face as she felt Clefairy hug her tighter.

“Anyways, since we’re still talking about Pallet Town, I’d also suggest you talk to Daisy.  She’s the professor’s granddaughter and is super nice.  Also, stop by Red’s house!  He’s super cool and Pallet Town is where he’s from so make sure you don’t miss out on that!”

Lillie giggled as she wondered what Moon would say if she told them she ran into Red on the S. S. Anne.  She put aside the thought as she listened to the rest of Moon’s message, memorizing every word of it before the screen blipped out and she wiped the last of her tears.

“You’ve got a good friend there.”

Lillie turned her gaze to the fairy captain who looked at her with sincerity.  “Yeah... I really do.”

She got up with a grunt as she pulled on her backpack straps so it rested heavily against her.  “Well, shall we head off?  Moon basically outlined the entire journey we need to take.”

“Sounds good,” Mina responded neutrally as she turned to leave.

“Wait!  Before you go, there is one last thing that I’d like you to take.”

Lillie tilted her head as Oak handed her a familiar red device.

“You want me to take a Pokédex?”

“Yes,” the professor answered with a nod.  “As someone who’s spent your whole life on an island designed to help Pokémon, I’d like you to take this with you.  It will give you information on any Pokémon you see, but it also only notes the behaviors of those from the Kanto region.”

“Oh, so, you want me to compare notes from what I’ve seen in Alola?”

“Precisely,” Oak answered with a smile.  “Given that there are regional variants between Kanto and Alola, it leads to the belief that Pokémon may also behave differently within different regions.  I know not all Pokémon native on Kanto can be found on Alola, but it would be most beneficial to our research here if we could examine those differences.”

“Right,” Lillie answered as she put the Pokédex away.  “I’ll do my best!”

“I’m sure you will.  In any case, enjoy your journey.  I’m certain you’ll grow from this experience.”

“I’m sure I will.  Thanks so much Professor Oak!”

“Later professor dude.”

The two walked out with a wave as Lillie immediately sent a glare Mina’s way.  “You know, you didn’t have to be rude.”

“I wasn’t rude.  Besides, he let that other guy call him Gramps.  In comparison, I should be considered incredibly respectful.”

“Yeah…” Lillie answered back though her voice was far away.   She was curious about who he was, but wasn’t quite sure if she really wanted to find out.  He seemed rather conceited from what little she’d seen of him, but she also knew that if she wanted to complete her journey she’d have to battle him eventually.

Those thoughts could wait till later.

“Anyways, let’s head to the professor’s home.  Moon said that someone named Daisy should help us out there.”

“Sure thing.”

They made the short trip to the house just north of the Pokémon Lab before Lillie knocked on the door.

“Hello?  Can I help you?”

“Oh!”  Lillie immediately stepped back from the brunette woman who had cracked open the door.  “I am so sorry for the intrusion, it’s just that I’m just starting a Pokémon journey and-”

“Oh my!  Is that a Clefairy?”

“Fairy?”

“Um…”

The brunette laughed before she opened the door wider.  “Come on in, I’ll make you some tea and give your Clefairy a massage.  They look like they would really like it.”

“Fairy!”

The blonde tried to call out to the Clefairy who rushed straight into the house as Mina walked right past her.  “Thank you for your hospitality.”

“It’s no problem,” the woman answered as she turned back towards Lillie.  “Aren’t you going to join us?”

“Uh… r-right!”

Lillie rushed into the house where Mina and Clefairy had already made themselves comfortable sitting at the table in the kitchen which caused Lillie to be overly flustered.  “You could at least show a little more respect to our host.”

“I already said thank you.”

The brunette laughed before passing by Lillie.  “You’re totally fine.  I’m actually not used to people knocking.  Most others just barge in when they want something.”

“You see Lillie, you’re being uptight again.”

“But… what?”  The blonde looked on flabbergasted as the woman began to put on the tea.  “You don’t mind people just wandering into your house?”

“Not really,” the brunette answered with a shrug.  “If anyone causes any problems I got my Pokémon ready.  Besides, everyone in Kanto leaves their doors unlocked in case people need something.  If they weren’t willing to accept people they’d just lock their door.”

“O-okay,” Lillie answered as she slowly walked towards the table to take a seat.  “Thank you.”

“It’s no problem!”  Their host answered enthusiastically as she started delivering the tea to all the guests.  “So, what can I do for you?”

Lillie squirmed slightly in her seat before holding her tea in her hands.  “Well, I’m just starting a Pokémon journey and I was told that there was someone here named Daisy who could set me on the right track.”

“Well, looks like you found me,” the woman answered with a smile as she began to pet Clefairy who had crawled into her lap.  “Here, this should help you out.”

Mina leaned over to look at the rolled up paper that Lillie had just been given.  “What is it?”

Lillie opened it up before using her fingers to trace over it.  The entire region of Kanto was now at her fingertips to explore.

“Well, that’s not that impressive.  Every Pokémon Center in the word has a region map.”

“Mina!”

Daisy’s heartfelt laugh interrupted the conversation as Clefairy melded into her methodical touch.  “I understand it’s not much, but I hope that it will help you in your journey.”

“I’m certain it will!”  Lillie exclaimed before sending Mina a glare.  “It’s not like Pokémon centers are always accessible.”

“Just stating the facts here,” Mina answered nonchalantly as she leaned back in her chair.  “Thanks though.”

“Sure!”  Daisy answered brightly over the Clefairy’s mewl.  “So, did my grandpa send you here?  I swear, I wonder why he has so many assistants if he’s just going to send kids on journeys to do his research for him.”

Mina gave Lillie a knowing smirk that she simply glared at.  “Professor Oak did ask me to do some research for him, but that was rather minor.  A friend of mine actually directed me to you.”

“Really?  What friend?”

“Why, Moon of course!  The current Alolan Champion.”

A pause settled over them as Daisy rested a hand on Clefairy’s head.  “Ah, then I suppose this hat Clefairy has came from them as well.”

“Wait,” Lillie paused as she failed to hide the surprise in her voice.  “You mean you knew Moon?!”

“Of course I knew Moon,” Daisy answered with a bittersweet smile crossing her face.  “Viridian City is only a stone’s throw away from here after all.”

“Moon was raised in Viridian City?!”

“They never told you any of this?”

Lillie sat back down in her seat as the somber expression in her tea stared back at her.  “No… whenever me or Hau would ask they’d simply refuse to answer.”

“This place wasn’t too kind to them,” Daisy answered mournfully as she pet the Clefairy’s head.  "Moon was part of the trainer school up there and they would often have field trips down here to visit the lab.  Grandpa told me there was one trip that ended rather badly.”

“What happened?”

Daisy gave a sigh.  “Grandpa was demonstrating how the Pokédex not only functioned as a Pokémon encyclopedia, but also how it was utilized within the Kanto region to function as an ID device.  Anyways, Grandpa was explaining how you could input your gender as either a boy or a girl when Moon asked ‘Why did people have to be either?’”

Daisy removed her hand from petting Clefairy as the memories caused a slight tremble in her hand.  “The class laughed at them.  Moon got flustered, trying to explain that there were plenty of Pokémon that were neither male or female and asking why they needed to be, but that was just responded with more taunts.  People even began saying that Moon must have been a Ditto disguised as a human, while others started throwing Pokéballs at them.  Moon withdrew from the trainer school after that.  I tried to visit, but their mom said that they just wanted to be left alone.  It wasn’t too long after that that they moved away.”

“I…” Lillie swallowed hard as she stared at her tea, feeling guilty at prying into her friend’s personal life.  She should’ve known this was the case with the way Moon avoided the topic.  She cupped her hands around the tea as she let the heat seep into her palms.  “I see…”

Daisy took a sip of her tea before offering a soft smile.  “At the very least, I’m glad that Moon managed to do well in Alola.  They even became League Champion there.”

Lillie offered a giggle before returning the smile.  “Yeah, Moon really is something else.”

“Well, if we’re all done with tea, then I guess there’s something else you ought to see.”

Daisy got up as Lillie hurried out of her seat.  “W-Wait, are you sure?  You’ve already done so much.”

“I’m positive.  It’s the least I can do for a friend of Moon’s.”

“Alright, field trip.”  Mina exclaimed in her nonchalant voice as she jumped out of her seat.  “Where we going?”

“To where Moon would claim is the most important landmark in Kanto.”

Mina turned to look at Lillie who simply offered a shrug as Clefairy climbed back up onto her shoulder.  They exited the house to follow Daisy only to stop one house down.

“Well, here we are.”

“This doesn’t look too impressive.”

Lillie rolled her eyes as a smirk crossed her face.  “This must be Red’s house.”

“Yep, you guessed it!”  Daisy announced cheerily with her hands on her hips.  “Well, don’t be shy, go on inside!”

“Wait, but-!”

Lillie’s pleas were ignored as Daisy pushed her through the door while she tried to collect her bearings.

“Oh, hello there.  Can I help you?”

“Oh, uh-”

“Hey Ms. Maple!”  Daisy shouted as she walked in after.  “Hope you don’t mind I brought some guests.”

“Hm, spacious house here,” Mina remarked as the woman gave a giggle.

“You’re perfectly fine Daisy.  Who do we have here today?”

“Well you remember Moon right?”  Daisy asked as she rested a hand on Lillie’s shoulder.  “Well, Lillie here is their friend.  She just got here from Alola.”

“Oh, that’s so wonderful!”  Ms. Maple announced as she clapped her hands.  “How is the dear child?  I heard they became quite successful as a Pokémon trainer in Alola.”

“They’re only the best!”  Lillie answered proudly as a large smile stretched across her face.  “They’re the one who inspired me to become a Pokémon trainer.”

“Oh, that’s so wonderful dear,” Ms. Maple answered as she hung her apron.  “You know, Moon would come here quite often asking after Red.  They would always tell me how they hoped to become a trainer just as good, I’m glad that wish came true.”

“Same here, Moon would always mention Red, even after they moved to Alola.”

“Well I’m glad my son’s been a good influence on them, though I hope Moon keeps in contact with their mother better than Red.  I almost never hear from him.  I know they say that no news is good news but still, a mother can’t help but worry.”

Lillie gave a soft giggle.  “Well, if you’re wondering about Red I saw him on the S.S. Anne.  He was the guest of honor there.”

“Was he now?”  Ms. Maple answered with a soft scoff.  “You’d think that if he’s so close to home he’d at least drop by and pay a visit.”  A light chuckle escaped her as she shook her head.  “Well, it’s good to hear he’s doing well.  I know he strives to challenge himself as a trainer.  Perhaps he’ll even battle you if you become strong enough.”

“I should be so lucky,” Lillie answered with a light giggle.  “I’m not sure how far I’ll actually be able to make it, but I’ll do my best.”

“I'm sure you'll be fine,” Ms. Maple answered with a laugh.  “Here, it isn’t much, but it’s all I can really give you.”

“What?”  Lillie questioned as she eyed the potion.  “But, Ms. Maple, I couldn’t!  You’ve already been such a gracious hostess.”

“And as such a hostess you should accept my gift.  And if that doesn’t please you, then take it as a token of my appreciation for letting me know that Red’s okay.”

“Uh… alright.  Thank you.”

“It’s no trouble.  And don’t be so shy about accepting gifts from strangers.  A Pokémon journey is long and hard, so take the help where you can find it.”

“O-Of course!  Thank you so much.”

The woman offered a smile at Lillie’s bow.  “Anytime.  Now you should get heading out.  There aren't many places to stay in Pallet Town, and you wouldn’t want to get caught on Route 1 after dark.”

“Right!  Thanks again!”

Lillie turned to the two others as she tightened her backpack straps.  “We ready?”

“Are you ready?  I think you need to thank Ms. Maple one more time.”

“Don’t be so rude Mina,” Lillie admonished before turning back towards the kitchen.  “Do you really think I should thank her again.”

Mina smirked as Daisy gave a laugh and opened the door.  “You’re totally fine, but you should definitely start heading out if you wanna get to Viridian before dark.”

“Right! Thanks again for all your help Daisy!”

The girl gave a shrug as she offered a smile.  “It’s what I’m here for.  Tell Moon to get in contact with me the next time you talk to them.  They need to know that they’re missed.”

“Will do!”  Lillie exclaimed as she turned towards Mina.  “You ready?”

“Almost,” the fairy captain answered as she scribbled a pastel quickly over a sketchpad.  “There, what do you think?”

Lillie looked it over, apparently Mina spent the entire visit at Red’s house drawing the house's kitchen.  “Why did you make this.”

“I got bored,” Mina answered with a shrug.  “That and if Red’s that famous then someone’ll appreciate it.”

“I suppose that’s a fair point,” Lillie answered as she turned towards Route 1.  “You ready to get this adventure started?”

“Sure.”

“How about you Clefairy?”

“Fairy!”

Lillie offered a giggle before taking her first step forward.

“Then let’s get going!”


	7. The School of Hard Knocks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I apologize for the late update, but I also gotta say that it'll probably be typical with me returning to school. I am going to try to keep up my fics, but I am still going to try to update this at least once every three months. In any case, I totally appreciate everyone's patience and understanding and hope you enjoy the latest update =)

_Besides the Pokemon Lab and Red’s house there’s not much else in Pallet Town.  From that point you may as well just head straight to Viridian City.  It’s not too far and the Pokémon on Route 1 are just a bunch of Rattatas and Pidgeys, so it should be a quick, easy walk._

“Why are we still out here again?”

Lillie tapped the pen against her chin as she studied the Rattata intensively.  “I promised Professor Oak that I would study the differences between Alolan and Kantonian Pokémon.  I never would’ve imagined that a Rattata could be purple!”

“Well, you could’ve, if you battled any of the tourists that bum around Alola.”

“Don’t ruin this moment of discovery for me Mina.”

“All I’m saying is that we’ve been out here for two hours,” Mina answered before flipping her sketchpad to show the drawing she made of a Rattata eating out of Lillie's bag as she dutifully took notes with a sleeping Clefairy beside her.  "I figured you'd wanna know about this at least.”

"Wah-!"  Lillie panicked as she threw off her bag and dug through her supplies before releasing a relieved sigh when she saw that the malasada and Pokemon egg were both in tact.  She sent Mina a glare who simply responded with the smallest traces of a smirk.

"That's not funny Mina."

The fairy captain shrugged her shoulders as she sharpened one of her pencils.  "Well, it could still happen if you plan on staying here much longer."

“That’s hardly fair!”  Lillie pouted before looking over her notes.  “Besides, the Kanto Pokédex doesn’t give much more information than the common knowledge of them being high in numbers in different areas and liking to chew on things.  It doesn’t mention how if a Rattata doesn’t file their teeth to an appropriate size they could potentially be unable to eat and die of starvation.”

“I’m sure someone knows that in some Pokédex somewhere.”

“And I don’t know anything about Pidgey!"  Lillie exclaimed as she looked over her handwritten notes.  "Who would’ve thought a Pokémon so common in one region would be completely non-existent in another?”

“Maybe the same reason you find rock Pokémon in a mountain and fire Pokémon in a volcano.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Lillie answered back as she packed her notebook away.  “Nobody looks for Pokémon in a volcano, they wouldn’t survive.”

“Fire Pokémon gotta come from somewhere,” Mina answered indifferently.  “So, are we finally going to head to that trainer school you were talking about?”

Lillie looked at her wristwatch before slinging her backpack over her shoulder.  “Yeah, it should be opening soon.  Let’s go Clefairy!”

“Fair…?”

The Pokémon in question rocked slightly, trying to wake themself up as Lillie lifted the Clefairy in her arms before following Mina out of the grassy patch.  They had made it to Viridian the night before and were able to stay in a hotel, but with as little Pokémon encounters as they’d had the day before Lillie was adamant that they wake up early to inspect the wildlife of Route One, much to Mina’s indifference.  It amazed and concerned Lillie just how unconcerned Mina was about everything, but she supposed that must've simply been the way Mina was.

She shook her head back into focus as they entered the familiar town with Lillie’s eyes falling to the large building in front of the Pokémon Gym.

 _Once you get to Viridian, well, I’d say just keep walking, but I guess there’re some things there that can be worthwhile.  Don’t forget to heal your Pokémon at the Pokémon Center and restock on supplies.  Don’t bother with the gym there.  It’s almost always closed, and even when it isn’t the leader there is a jerk.  The only other thing that_ could _be considered worthwhile is the Pokémon school.  If you need a refresher on Pokémon training or status conditions then you can go there.  Otherwise just be ready for a long journey through the Viridian Forest._

Lillie shuddered slightly.  That school had driven Moon away from their home and sent them adrift to the same island that Lillie had ended up on.  She hated the idea that if it weren’t for those bullies she never would've met Moon.  That felt too much like justifying the bullies’ behavior because it worked out in _her_ benefit.  It felt wrong.

But… she couldn’t help but be curious.  Lillie was certain that she already knew whatever the school had to teach her, and whatever she didn’t know she would take the leap of faith that Mina did, so she didn’t think it was necessary to go to the school.

Her hand trembled slightly before grabbing hold of the door handle.

She was just too curious.

She opened the door, peeking slightly into the classroom as her eyes were immediately drawn to the crowd of students that were chatting in the middle of the classroom where there stood a girl with navy blue hair that was curled into ringlets and cut short at her chin, complimenting her golden eyes that seemed to illuminate above her cat-like smile.

“Um… Hello there.”

All eyes turned towards Lillie who fought off a blush as the center girl rose from the desk she was leaning on.  “What do you want?”

“Oh, um, nothing really…” Lillie awkwardly mumbled out as she twirled a strand of her hair around her finger.  “I just wanted to check out the school.”

“Psh, this isn’t a place for just anyone to wander into,” the girl answered as she brushed her hair past her shoulder.  “This is a place for real trainers who actually have a chance at getting at the champion.”

“Oh, you mean beating the eight gym leaders and the elite four?”  Lillie asked, desperately trying to hide the sarcasm in her voice.  “I understand how that works here.”

“Hmph, you clearly don’t understand as much as you think if you can’t even get your Clefairy in a Pokéball.”

“Excuse me,” Lillie stated, trying desperately to fight off the irritation that she knew was clawing into her tone.  “If Clefairy wants to travel outside of a Pokéball they have every right to.”

“Psh, you sound just like those radicals in the Unova region.”

“What’d you say?”

“And look at this ridiculous hat-”

“Fairy!”

Clefairy swatted away the girl’s hand as she grimaced at the Pokémon.  “Ugh, what a mongrel.  I don’t know why it’d wear such a raggedy disgrace.”

“Hey!  This hat happened to be given to me by a friend!”

The girl looked the hat over before her gaze darkened.  “Did this hat come from Moon?”

“That’s right!” Lillie answered dramatically.  “Moon gave this to me before I left to become a Pokémon trainer.  And I’m going to become an incredible trainer just like them!”

“Oh please, Moon just went to Alola to gain easy access to fame.  The sticks out there didn’t even have a proper Pokémon league, so of course Moon would leave here.  After all, it’s easier to claim you have talent when you’re surrounded by a bunch of losers.”

“You don’t know anything about Moon!”

“I know more than you think,” the girl answered in a low voice.  “If you don’t like it then you can always leave.”

The class resounded in a chorus of ‘ooohs’ at the escalating situation as Lillie turned towards Clefairy in her arms before they both nodded.  “You’re a trainer, right?  I suggest we settle this the proper way.”

“Cute.  You actually think of yourself as a trainer,” the girl pushed herself off the desk before sending a wicked smirk to Lillie.  “If that’s how you want it though, then meet me outside.”

Excited chatter buzzed around the classroom as Lillie scowled.

“This is why I hated school.  Too much drama.”

“If you thought that was dramatic just wait till after the battle.”

Lillie stormed out of the school and towards the school’s courtyard, ready to wipe the smug smirk off of… whoever that girl was.  Seriously, who was that girl?  She groaned deciding that the girl’s name wasn’t important.  She was going to annihilate her.

“So, you ready to do this?”

“Of course,” Lillie turned her gaze down to the Clefairy in her arms.  “You’ve got this Clefairy.”

The Clefairy nodded, jumping out of her arms as they took a fighting stance, causing the other girl to chuckle.

“Of course you’d use that Clefairy,” the girl responded casually as she pulled out a Pokéball.  “Go Jigglypuff.”

She tossed the ball as a red light gave form to the Jigglypuff who watched readily, waiting for further commands.

Lillie paused for a moment, both Clefairy and Jigglypuff were normal/fairy type Pokémon with very similar movesets so there was no real advantage on either side.

Lillie would have to trust her knowledge and instincts.

“Clefairy, use Sing!”

The Clefairy took in a deep inhale before releasing a beautiful melody, making the Jigglypuff drowsy as they fell asleep.

“Nice Clefairy!  Now use Double Slap!”

“Fairy!”

“Jigglypuff, Sleep Talk!”

“Jig…ly…”

The Pokémon in question wobbled slightly as their fur coat started to shimmer.

“Is that-?”

“Fairy!”

SLAP

The sound rang throughout the courtyard, but the Jigglypuff seemed unfazed as Lillie immediately began to panic.

“Clefairy!  Get out of there quick!”

“Sleep Talk.”

The Jigglypuff responded, tilting their head slightly before sending a barrage of slaps towards the Clefairy who tried to counter the attacks.

“Clefairy, use Defense Curl!”

The Clefairy found their footing before a metallic sheen took over their fur, softening the blow of the attack.  The girl scowled in response.

“Again Jigglypuff, Sleep Talk!’

The Jigglypuff continued the barrage of slaps as Lillie noticed the Pokémon’s eyes twitching slightly.

“Clefairy, use Minimize!”

The Clefairy shrunk, running beneath the Jigglypuff as the Pokémon continued to slap the air in front of them.

“Jigglypuff!  What are you doing?!”

The Jigglypuff’s eyes blinked rapidly before looking around as if they wanted to ask the same question.

“Clefairy, use Double Slap!”

The Clefairy returned to their regular size before sending a barrage of slaps back towards the Jigglypuff as her opponent scowled.

“Jigglypuff, Double Slap!”

“Clefairy use Minimize!”

The Clefairy shrunk again as the Jigglypuff swiped at the air, causing the girl to get largely frustrated.

“Jigglypuff, use Feint Attack!”

Lillie’s eyes widened, she thought that Jigglypuff looked familiar, but…

“Clefairy, Defense Curl!”

The Clefairy turned back to their regular size as the metallic sheen returned, absorbing the entire impact of the blow.

“Clefairy, finish this with Double Slap!”

The Clefairy took a deep breath before unleashing their final barrage of slaps, forcing the Jigglypuff back before they rolled across the ground with the girl returning the Jigglypuff to their Pokéball.

“What a waste.  I can’t believe my Jigglypuff would end up being so weak!”

“Excuse me!”  Lillie put her hands on her hips as she glared at the girl before her.  “Your grandfather hired a top breeder to raise the perfect Pokémon for you and that’s how you treat them?!”

“How I treat my Pokémon is my business!”  The girl shouted back.  “Besides, how do you know so much about this?  What, did you stalk my grandpa and kidnap the Jigglypuff that was supposed to be mine?!”

“Ugh, as if I’d even waste my time.  You’re spoiled rotten and an absolute nuisance!”

“Excuse me?!  You’re talking to the future Kanto Champion!”

“There’s no way you’ll become champion!  I’ll become the champion so that you can’t!”

“Oh yeah, then let’s shake on it!”  The girl extended her hand as the small frown remained on her face.  “I, Luna Nightshade, will become the Kanto Pokémon League Champion.”

“I’m Lillie,” the blonde answered as she firmly took the given hand.  “And you’re going to have to beat me to get that title.”

Luna scoffed.  “Piece of cake.”

“Um, excuse me,” they all turned their attention to the woman who had just arrived at the courtyard.  “I know that was a very engaging battle, but class started about ten minutes ago.”

The students collectively groaned as Luna gave Lillie a sly smirk before meeting the woman and entering the school with the others.  Lillie puffed up her cheeks in frustration as the woman turned towards her.  “Are you new?  You’re welcome to join our class for today if you’d like.”

Lillie shook the grimace off her face before giving a soft smile and a slight bow.  “No thank you, I think I’ve had enough excitement here.”

“As you wish,” the woman answered.  “Oh, and great battle there.  I see you going far.”

The smile widened across Lillie’s face as the woman disappeared behind the door.

“Are you sure you don’t want to stay for class?”

Lillie turned towards Mina before giving a shrug.  “No, it’s okay.  Like you said earlier, school’s just drama.”

“Drama that you invited to sporadically follow us wherever we go.”

"Oh please, she's gotta finish school here first.  I'm never gunna run into her again," Lillie turned back towards the school before tightening her backpack straps and addressing Mina.  “Well, I guess that finishes up what we had here.”

“So, Viridian Forest then.”

"Yep," Lillie gave a giggle as she hugged Clefairy tighter.  “The journey just keeps going.”

“That’s what a journey is,” Mina stated as she readjusted her bag.  “A trip to a destination.”

“A destination huh?”

Lillie’s eyes turned far away as she looked at the hat Clefairy wore.  The Clefairy turned to look at the girl before waving their arms and causing Lillie to shake her head and snap back to reality.

“You alright Lillie?”

“Huh? Oh yeah,” she offered a light laugh as she scratched the back of her head.  It felt a little ridiculous to her, that she went all the way to a different region just to have going back home being her destination, but she wanted to have a trip that would be worthy of telling Moon about.

She wanted to make them proud.

“Well, what are we waiting for?”  Lillie asked as she turned towards the road that’d take them to the Viridian Forest as the smile refused to leave her face.

She would make Moon proud, no matter what it would takes.


End file.
